Eratastic
by Unexpected Hopeless Romantic
Summary: Ever wonder how Heiji and Kazuha, Kaito and Aoko and Shinichi and Ran would end up in their past lives? Here's the answer! In different eras of time, their love stories are anew yet similar to the present as well. They care, they fight, they love.
1. Primitive Underwear

_**A/N: So, this crazy idea of drabbles hit me. Each chapter has a different era in history (which is ironic, because I'm not good at the subject). Anyway, it starts from the past and ends at the future. It's kinda weird, but I like the idea. Especially since per chap is a different pairing. For this chap, it's HeijiXKazuha! Enjoy**_

_**Chapter 1- Primitive Underwear**_

The scene was filled with crooked mountains, erupting volcanoes, trees of big altitude and enormous dinosaurs. In a far distance, there was a woman cooking dinner in her cave, not knowing of such tragedy to come. However, in a nearer distance to the volcanoes, a tan caveman saw the volcanoes' outbreak from a tree and ran as fast as he could back to his cave. He was going to warn his 'friend' of the catastrophe to come.

He ran as fast as he could barefooted and reached the cave in a span of ten minutes. He then hurried to a girl wearing a worn-out brown ponytail made of dried leaves.

"Kazuha!!! The volcanoes are erupting! We have to get out of here!" he screamed as he pulled the girl out of the cave. Soon after, they ran as fast as they could to the sea.

Though, unfortunately, Kazuha slipped on a rock and got wounded. She couldn't stand up and stopped moving. "Ouch! Heiji, help me! I slipped!" she pleaded.

"Ahou! You're such a klutz! Come here!" scolded Heiji then hurriedly carried her into his arms, in a bride style kind of way.

Kazuha blushed, and wanted to go away from Heiji of embarrassment. But she couldn't move. Though, she really loved the fact Heiji carried her and didn't complain. She loved that he didn't leave her and decided to be with her even though their lives were at danger.

They finally reached the sea in a couple of minutes. Heiji laid Kazuha by the seashore for a while. 

"Stay here. We need something to get us out of here! I'll go find something," Heiji said as he searched the shoreline.

Fortunately, Heiji saw some broken pieces of wood and leaves that were strong enough to hold the wood. He took it and made a raft of it. Next, he went back to Kazuha and carried her all the way to the raft.

"Heiji… tell me everything's going to be okay," Kazuha asked, scared.

"Of course it will be. You're with me," he answered, placing her on the raft. Then, he pushed the raft to the sea and went on it as well. He and Kazuha afterwards paddled their way away from the island.

---

The volcanoes' lava reached the seashore in a few minutes. It was good luck that they had left it already.

After a while, from their immense and long journey of paddling, they finally reached a new island. It was all green, different from where they came from, filled with big mountains, trees and dinosaurs. Though, of course, the new island had dinosaurs as well.

"I think this will be our new home, Kazuha-chan," Heiji explained, as their so called 'boat' stopped by the shore.

Kazuha smiled at him. "I guess it would be. Uhmm… Heiji… thanks for rescuing me back there. You could have just left me you know."

Heiji looked at her seriously. "Of course, I would I leave you? You may be an ahou, but you're still…"

Out of the blue, unexpectedly, a big Tyrannosaurus Rex came and bit Heiji's butt.

"OWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!! Kuso!" he exclaimed, trying to run away from the dinosaur.

"Heiji-kun!" Kazuha called out, attempting to stand up but couldn't.

"Help me!!!" he called, still trying to get away. 

Kazuha tried to stand up but couldn't. "I can't stand up!" 

"Well try! Do you want me to die?"

The dinosaur's mate then appeared and approached Heiji as if he was wondering why he was bossing Kazuha around. She then opened her mouth wide and made a screechy noise.

"Don't eat him!!!" Kazuha stood up of the pain but just supported herself by a stick near her.

The two T-Rexes then looked at each other, the guy, still having Heiji's clothing caught on his mouth. Suddenly, the girl T-Rex then made a sound. It was a sound of understanding and guilt.

The boy T-Rex just nodded upon understanding his partner's language. He decided to drop Heiji down to the ground.

Unfortunately for him, he fell down on a pile of some other dinosaur's dung. Next, the Tyrannosauruses just left Heiji and Kazuha.

Kazuha tried to run towards the heap of poop Heiji was in. Too bad she couldn't. Her wound didn't let her walk. So, she just crawled to Heiji. It was very hard to do, but she was determined to get to him.

"Heiji… are you… okay?" she asked, her face all dirty, and actually her whole body, because of crawling on the ground.

Heiji looked at her and tried going towards her but couldn't make himself get out of the smelly pile of dung he was in.

"You okay?" Kazuha asked, presenting her hand to Heiji. Her look showed such sadness and worry. 

Heiji smiled and gave his hand to her. "Yeah, I guess." He then began, "Thanks…" 

Kazuha then pulled Heiji out of the dung. His bottomless butt was afterwards revealed.

"Wah!?" she commented as she closed her eyes and pushed Heiji back to the reeking piece of animal dirt.

Heiji hid in the dung, not even thinking that he got dirtier. "Whoops! I didn't know that."

"Well, get yourself dressed!" she exclaimed.

_**A/N: Haha… I like the ending. Please R&R! XD**_


	2. Emperor and Concubine

_**So… here's the next chap everybody's been waiting for! This time, we start early civilizations. For this chap, China! BTW, I take back that it'll start from the past to the future. Haha! Sorry! The chapters will depend on my mood. :P Because I feel like it and I really don't remember the timeline of the eras. :P Anyway, enjoy this chap. It's a KaitoAoko chap. Oh, BTW, you may be wondering why Kaito's last name is Kuloba here. It's because there's no 'R' in Chinese. Yeah it doesn't sound right, but it is true.**_

_**Chapter 2- Emperor and Concubine**_

There once lived an emperor who everybody in China loved. Though, his tale was never told and was never included to the official line of the dynasties (Shang, Chou, Chin, Han, Sui, Tang, Sung, Yuan, Ming, Manchu) just like the dynasty Hsia Dynasty. But his dynasty was the earliest that ever walked the face of China, even before the mythical Hsia Dynasty. And now… here is the story.

This emperor started off as a teenager, since his father, Toichi was killed unexpectedly by the people in denial of his reign. So, the young 17 year old did his best and adjusted to the circumstance. And his name? His name is Kaito Kuloba.

Kaito was a handsome young man. His hair, cool enough for people, his skin, just right in color and his eyes, different from everybody else, with sapphire orbs. He was also good in everything that made everybody else love him. They in fact liked him better than his father. After all, he wasn't only good-looking and talented. He had a good personality, open to the people, kind to them, and also just.

Though, under some troubles that had overcome, he had to marry at the age of 15. His wife was a woman of fairly looks and smarts, but she wasn't as kind as Kaito. Some would say she wasn't even kind at all. She may be as perfect at him in some aspects, but she had the flaw of being mean to everybody and having a short sense of temper.

Because of this, Kaito never loved his wife, but he chose to stay with her for his country. But he of course had to love someone else. That person's name is Aoko and she's a mere beggar from the lowly area of China.

Kaito had the habit of clothing in normal or even poor clothes. He wanted to know how to be in such situation, and that is how he met Aoko.

---

Aoko was asking for money from people at the streets with her friend, Hakuba. The guards ceased them. In her terror, she stepped on one of the guard's foot and ran away. Hakuba of course followed. Because of such action, she bumped into Kaito in the way.

"Ouch!" they said in unison. Afterwards they stared at each other as if falling in love in first sight. Hakuba just tapped his friend's shoulder to gain her attention.

Aoko looked back at Hakuba then directed to Kaito. "Oh… I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," she apologized, finally remembering why she was running in the first place. She then kept on running and Hakuba did as well. Kaito just decided to follow her to help her out.

"Excuse me miss. What's wrong?" Kaito asked as he ran as well, following Aoko who continued to run.

"They're after me!"

"Who?"

"The guards!!!"

"Why? What have you done?"

Hakuba pulled Aoko. "You shouldn't talk to him. For all we know, he's on their side," he whispered.

Aoko shook her head. "I know he's not like that." She afterwards looked at Kaito. "I was only asking for money. I am just a beggar. That's all I can do." 

"Well, in this rate you'll get caught, come with me! I know my way around the city," Kaito told her, pulling her. She just went ahead and Hakuba followed them as well.

Though, unfortunately for the three of them, the guards finally caught up. "Aha! You're trying to help this girl? You should know better! She's been wanted in the city. This guy also! They must be the ones stealing food everywhere!"

"I never steal!" defended Aoko, attempting to hit the guards. Luckily, Kaito pulled her back.

"Liar!!!!" the two muscular yet dim-witted guards answered.

Hakuba started to talk. "Why you two-"

"I believe her," Kaito said calmly.

"Who are you to talk? You're just a beggar like her. I bet you must be an accomplice," one of them accused.

"How dare you say such thing! You don't know who you're talking to!"

"Who are you, the emperor?" the other one mocked.

Kaito then undressed his beggar clothes and revealed his royal clothing that could only be wore by the emperor. The two stupid guards gasped in shock. "Yes, I am the emperor."

"Your imperial majesty!" they bowed. "We're so sorry. We didn't know. Please, please, forgive us!" they then pleaded.

"I shall only do that if you promise to forgive and never dare bother this girl… excuse me miss, may I know your name?" Kaito asked.

Aoko smiled. "My name's… Aoko," she shyly replied.

"Very well then, we must be off. I pity of such state you're in. You shall live in my palace, come."

"Wait… I'm sorry you're Holy Highness, but… are you asking me to be your concubine? I'm sorry, I…can't. I don't believe infidelity is right."

"And neither do I. No, no, I'm not asking you to be my concubine. I'm asking you to stay in the palace as my guest. So what do you say Aoko? You're… friend can also come," he asked, offering a hand.

"No thank you! We don't need-" Hakuba started to say but was cut-off, seeing what Aoko did.

Aoko blushed but still accepted Kaito's hand. Hakuba had no choice but come with her. She was after all his best friend, and he promised to protect her no matter what.

Anyway, from that day on, Aoko was treated by everybody else in a higher rank than before.

---

But even spending on several months in the palace, Aoko was still looked at as a lowly beggar by a certain person, Kaito's wife, Akako. She humiliated her often, talked bad about her (in her presence or not), hurt her in many different ways and made her jealous whenever she could by using Kaito. She of course knew she had feelings for him.

Akako didn't really love Kaito, but she loved being the empress and wouldn't dare that position be taken from a former beggar and a person that looks like a... lowly dirty concubine

---

Aoko was once cleaning Akako's figurines on a white porcelain table, when suddenly one fell from the surprise of Akako's scream.

"What are you doing!?" she raged in anger. 

_Clash_

"Oh no! I'm so sorry, my lady! It would never happen again!" Aoko said as she bowed down then took the pieces of the broken figurine.

Akako slapped her hard on the face, leaving a red mark. Because of the loud sound that had happened, Kaito came to the rescue upon hearing so.

"Akako, stop it! Whatever Aoko did, you shouldn't have hurt her," he scolded in an angry face then turned to Aoko. "Are you okay?" he asked, changing his emotion from mad to concern.

Aoko nodded though still in pain.

"Kaito, you're always on her side! Remember, I'm your wife! She's just your concubine! You haven't even done sex with her! Hmfh!" his wife said and left them both.

Akako's comment made the two blush so much.

"I'm so sorry for her behavior. You do know you're not my concubine. You're just a guest here."

There was an odd eerie silence. Until, Aoko couldn't keep her emotions anymore and had to ask, "But… if I'm just a guest, then shouldn't I be leaving? Guests don't stay permanently. Unless they are family or royalty… or… as Akako said… a… concubine." 

"Don't mind her, she doesn't know what she's talking about. Besides, she's just like that when she's angry. She's okay if you get to know her."

"I think she won't allow me. She's jealous of me." 

"How would she be? She doesn't love me, Aoko," Kaito explained.

Aoko looked at Kaito seriously. "Isn't she your wife? Then why did you two-"

"We married each other for the sake of the country, not for love." 

"Isn't that hard? You know, doing… it… with someone you don't love," Aoko carefully said.

"Who says we've done it? We may be married, but we don't have to have sex. What we have is strictly business, that's all."

"But… don't you really find it awkward that you're married to her and you don't love her?"

"Yeah… I do. But I find it even more awkward seeing someone I love and not being married to her," Kaito seriously said, portraying to Aoko.

Aoko blushed in crimson. "Uh… and who's that you're talking about?"

"Do I really have to answer that question?" Kaito asked as he began to draw his lips to Aoko's.

Aoko just stood there and looked at Kaito. And in a couple of seconds, they finally kissed. Hakuba saw this and just left the palace as soon as he could. His heart just got ripped out. He really like Aoko a lot.

"Kaito, can I be your concubine?" she questioned after a while.

"I thought you don't want to be."

"Yeah, I know. But… if I do become your concubine, then nothing would be bad of our relationship, right? China accepts infidelity."

"But you don't. Aoko… I'm sorry. I can't let you be my concubine. I know you don't want to. You're just forced. I'm also sorry for letting you experience this. I guess we shouldn't have met. I love you so much but… it's just not meant to be."

"Then I guess we just have to be the emperor and the guest… forever."

"I guess that's all we can do."

---

But Aoko was lucky, because Akako died the next day. As what happened to Kaito's father, Akako was killed by the people who hated her, including Hakuba who finally accepted that Aoko should be happy. Besides, people saw Aoko as really cruel, mean, and didn't care about to people, no matter how perfect she was.

Though, of course, Kaito still grieved even a little of this happening, but afterwards, he proposed to Aoko in pure bliss. "Aoko… I told you I don't want you to be my concubine… but… would you be my wife?" he asked as he held her hands together. 

"But… isn't this too sudden? Akako just died."

"Aoko, I want this so much. I can't help it. I know you do too."

"Fine, I accept to marry you."

And they did marry.

---

"So, what's the food for the celebration?" Kaito asked his new wife, as they were finally married and were off to eat.

She smiled. "Fish."

Kaito dropped a sweat. "You have a lot to learn about me, my dear. A lot."

"Why?"

"Fish…ARE EVIL!"

Aoko just sweat dropped, including all the guests in the table.

_**A/N: I thought this was sweet. I didn't put much humor on it, but I personally like it. Hope you guys like it too. R&R! BTW, comments and suggestions? Next is a ShinRan chapter… what era would you guys want it to be?**_


	3. Her Knight in Shining Terror

_**So… it's Christmas break and I have time to update this! Even though I have a lot of plans to write some fics in the OURAN fandom. And that I've already posted a fic, actually. :P Anyway, you guys check it out. It's nice there, nice fics. And if you haven't watched or read the manga, you're missing out!! So read read read or watch watch watch! OO sorry, post-Ouran syndrome. :P Just finished watching it in two sittings. :PP It's unfortunately just 26 episodes. Oh well. There's still the manga to read! So… we're far from the topic, because this is all about DC! So… this chapter's ShinRan centric, by that said, I'll let you guess who's the additional character I put here. :P So… what else? Uh… a certain reviewer said, I should set it as Shinichi a knight. Though, I didn't totally take her advice, but just see! I hope she likes it! And hope you guys like it as well! **_

_It was the darkest of days, in the darkest of ages in time. Yes, you got it right. It's time for the Medieval ages' crusade. It's the time where all the knights and the chosen ones go off to foreign lands to capture kingdoms and share their culture. And one of those included in this particular crusade, was a person named Shinichi Kudo._

_Anyway, our tale begins before the crusade, with him in the palace, bowing by the King, giving an oath for his life to serve only to him and his family, or as they call it, the Code of Chivalry. He will not disobey him whatever what cause, and even risk his life for the said king. And the king's name? Kogoro Mori._

_Kogoro was a man of joy and of total addiction to alcohol and to infidelity to his wife. Though, by infidelity, that doesn't mean he slept with a lot of women, but that he just loved flirting with other women. Because of this, the queen left him, even if it was hard, since the princess had to be left to his husband, to be the next person for the crown._

_Now, enough about my gibbering of this whole circumstance. Let's now journey on to what really happened. For it is better to witness than listen._

_A whirlpool of different colors leads us all to the medieval ages, in the time of Shinichi's oath taking_

"Do you, Sir Shinichi Kudo, promise to protect our Lord, King, Kogoro Mori?" the vizier asked.

"Yes," he said as he bowed his head, still kneeling down.

"Then, I bestow unto you this honor, of becoming a knight," Kogoro said, placing his sword both on Shinichi's shoulders and proclaiming him as he said, a knight.

"Thank you my Lord," he responded willingly and stood up.

Soon after, Kogoro's daughter came in from the room. Shinichi saw her and was captivated from her beauty.

"Father! I really think that stalker of mine might strike soon. And this time, I think he's serious. Look!" she said, running to him as she held a piece of paper.

"What? Oh no!" Mori said, as he grabbed the paper and read it.

"What should I do, father?"

"Hmm… this would test this knight's skill. I'll let him take care of you, daughter," he answered as he looked at the staring Shinichi.

"Uh… hello? You there?" the princess asked while waving her hand in front of the knight.

Shinichi snapped back to reality. "Oh? Hello, my princess. My name's Shinichi Kudo. What can I do to serve you?" he greeted, bowing as he blushed as well, being caught from staring at her.

She giggled. "I am Princess Ran Mori, and I want you to protect me from the stalker who sent me this message," she answered, pouting while she gave him the note.

Shinichi judged the writing and knew exactly who it was. "I know this writing. It's from the famous Kaitou Hood."

"Oh no!" everybody gasped. Kaitou Hood was the infamous thief, like the Robin Hood in the world of humans.

"But… may I ask… how do you know his writing?" the fair maiden said.

Shinichi panicked. _"They shouldn't know what I have to do with Kaito!!!" _

They all waited for his answer. "Well? Answer her, knight!" the king said.

"Uh… I know Kaitou Hood because…" he said stammering. _"Come on, Kudo. Think of a lie! Aha!" _he thought to himself then took a big breath. "It's because… he once robbed me."

"But you're poor! He wouldn't steal from-" the king started to state until his daughter shun him on the stomach.

"Father, don't be so rude!"

"No, it's okay, my princess. I know I am poor. Actually, I'm not really supposed to be a knight since I am poor. But my parents were once a Baron and a Baroness, so I got a special case to be a knight."

"Oh, I see. Oh, I almost forgot! I have to go to the courtyard to practice horseback riding. Do you care to assist me?" she asked.

"Sure, I will help. Though, what about your father?" he pointed out to the king in pain.

Ran grinned. "He'll recover. He does every time. Come on, let's go," she said then pulled the newly proclaimed knight to the courtyard.

Courtyard 

"So… my lady? Just wondering, was this note the very first one Kaitou Hood gave you?" Shinichi asked as Princess Ran rode her white stallion all over the courtyard.

"Hmm… no, it's not actually the first. He just started it after the big fire in the city."

"Big fire?"

"Yeah, don't tell me you don't know that happened. It was such a news, such a commotion!"

"I think I was somewhere doing my duty, for my master knight then," Shinichi said all annoyed. It was obvious that he didn't really like the one who trained him. "So… what happened in the fire? Did some people get hurt?" he asked, changing emotion. 

"Uh…A lot. Though, they were all peasants. But still… I can't believe dad won't even help those who survived. He told me 'They're filthy beings, nothing to help. They steal from us anyway,'" Ran said emotionally then mimicked his father's expression.

"Oh, I see. Anyway, don't you think, Kaitou Hood is after you because your father didn't help?"

"But… he doesn't harm people, right Shinichi?" she asked getting scared.

"From what I've heard, no. But if he does, don't worry. I'll be here to protect you, princess."

"Hey… uh… Shinichi, tell me, about what you said in front of father a while ago- that you met Kaitou Hood because he stole from you. Tell me what happened," Ran said and went down her horse and sat beside the knight.

"Uh… well, I don't usually tell people this. You'll be the first one I tell this story to. But… okay. I think you can keep a secret."

She smiled.

"My father and mother were a very righteous baron and baroness. Actually, the thief never robbed from us for a while, since he usually robs from people who had done something bad to the people."

Ran giggled. "That explains why he usually robs from father."

Shinichi gave out a chuckle as well. "Anyway, ha! Uh… well, my parents got in this really big scandal of stealing from the previous king, your mother's father." (_Note: Kogoro only gained his kingship because of Eri.)_

"Grandfather? Why?" Ran asked all shocked. She knew her grandfather was a much better king than his father. But why would there be a scandal of him and Shinichi's family?

"It's not really his fault. We were just… accused that we robbed from him, and used the robbed money for our own sakes. Kaitou Hood must have…. found out about this, and he stole all of our money. Seeing this happened… my parents' power was taken as well, thanks to the other… feudal lords surrounding your grandfather who just had to… brainwash him. Uh… because of this… my parents' title as baron and baroness was taken away as well," Shinichi stated hardly.

"I didn't know! I'm so sorry, Shinichi! If there's anything I could do to repay for my family's error to yours, let me know, and I will do it," Ran said seriously.

Shinichi shook his head. "That's in the past. I forgive your family. It isn't their fault. It's Kaitou Hood's," he answered, getting slightly mad.

Out of the blue, the topic of the conversation appeared. The smug, notorious, yet good-looking Kaitou Hood. He was in his usual attire. He had his brown eccentric hat and his monocle, and as well as the cape that he always wore. (_Note: It's the medieval ages! Kaitou's outfit should differ a bit!) _"Greetings my fair lady and… Shinichi," he said with a gentleman stance then made an annoyed look at Shinichi.

"Stay away from us!" Ran exclaimed though tremulous from seeing the infamous Kaitou Hood.

"Ah, my lady. Do not fear. Don't you remember me? I'm not here to rob from you. I'm here to-"

"Stay away from her!" Shinichi said as he went in front of the princess.

"No! You stay away from her! Your veins are the same of your family's! You're a shameful person!" Kaitou Hood said as he went nearer to the two.

"You can talk crap about me, but not my family!" Shinichi said as he charged Kaitou Hood with his sword.

Fortunately for Kaitou Hood, he was always armed. He had his special arrow with him and used it to block Shinichi's sword. "Come on, brother, can you really harm me?" he said unexpectedly which cause Shinichi to drop his sword and kneel to the ground.

From impulse, Ran kicked Kaitou Hood to the ground. He got shocked and as well as Shinichi. That showed by the sweat drops. _"That girl sure is tough. It's as if she doesn't need me to protect her," _Shinichi said, a little bit humiliated.

But Ran didn't think of what they did. She was just shocked of what Kaitou Hood had said that after attacking him with her killer kick, she just had to ask, "Brother? What does he mean by that?" 

Shinichi stood up and approach her. "I guess lying to you wouldn't do much."

"Lying? What does that mean?" she asked, carefully walking away from him.

"Princess… the way I met Kaitou Hood. It wasn't like that. He's really… actually my brother."

Ran tripped on a rock backwards. "Ouch!"

Both Kaitou Hood and Shinichi helped her up. "Are you okay?" they asked in unison.

"Stay away from me!" she said, trying to stand up.

"Princess, don't be angry with me. I just-" Shinichi started to say but was cut-off by the maiden.

"How can I be not angry, Shinichi? You swore to protect me and I find out you're the brother of the one who's about to kill me?" 

"I'm not here to kill you! You're exaggerating! I never kill anyone, woman!" Kaitou hood said, exasperated.

"Princess, let me tell you the truth," Shinichi asked.

"Fine," Ran responded as she crossed her arms in front of her. "But I'll be to judge if I believe you or not."

"Okay. You see… Kaitou Hood's my brother, but we're not blood relatives. His parents died from poverty and we took him as our own family. But… when my parents were accused of stealing, he… left home. He couldn't take knowing that our parents were thieves. Though… he didn't steal from us. I admit, that's the lie. But… almost everything else I told you, is the truth. It is true that you're the only one I told this story to, even though we just met."

"Liar! You two didn't meet just now! You're confusing me! Aoko, tell me the truth!" Kaitou Hood emoted.

"Aoko?!" Shinichi and Ran said together. "She's/I'm not Aoko!"

"What?" Kaitou Hood said, falling down, anime style.

"Wait… Aoko? Are you talking about Aoko Nakamori? The peasant?" Ran asked.

"Don't call her a peasant!!!!"

"Okay, okay. Though… you know… she died, in that fire," she explained, abruptly getting sad.

"That can't be! I saw her survive after the fire!"

"That was me," she explained further. "I was in the fire as well, because I went to see her. She was one of my best friends. But… she unfortunately died, Kaitou Hood. When suddenly… there was the fire, and we were locked in the house. She got trapped in fragments of wood falling from the fire. I tried to help her, but the knights came and took me away. I told them to save her, but they couldn't do anything more. She died and burned in the fire. I'm so sorry, Kaitou Hood," Ran said, crying more and more by each word she said.

Kaitou Hood took off his brown hat and his monocle. It revealed that he was just a person that looked a lot like his brother, though they really weren't blood relatives. But, as he did so, he was different from what everybody expected. Different from what they expected under the mask. He didn't seem like the strong Kaitou Hood everyone wealthy feared. He just looked like a simple Kaito Kuroba that cried from the very death of the one he loved. "I'm sorry of causing you two trouble. But… I just can't believe-"

Ran then hugged her, cutting off what he was about to say. "It's okay. Though, don't worry. I know she loves you and will be waiting for you, when the time comes. She told me herself."

Kaito looked at her seriously. "She loves me?" 

Ran nodded while speaking. "Yes."

"How?"

"She always talked about a certain person named, 'Kaito' that was always there for her. She told me that she always wanted to tell you how she felt, that she couldn't live without you." 

"Aoko!" Kaito cried even more.

Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Brother, don't worry. We're here for you. I'm sorry for not being there for you. But I'll be here from now on, Kaito."

"Thank you, brother," he said as he hugged Shinichi.

---

Years had passed, though after that happening, the kingdom just happened to live peacefully. Ran convinced his dad to improve on his reigning ways, with the help of Shinichi and Kaito. Kaito even promised to all the feudal lords that he wouldn't rob from them anymore if they just become just.

Now, Kaito may had been sad, without Aoko, but deep down inside, he was happy, that he knew he loved him back, and that he could bring justice without stealing anymore. He lives with his brother Shinichi again, and now, he supports him, though not financially. No, Shinichi still does that. But he does help him out in bringing him and Princess Ran together and different ways. Moonlight serenades by her tower, dates in the beautiful courtyard filled with the full moon and music of the gentlemen and ladies, sleeping by the garden of flowers in the palace and even an adventurous night out in the serene woods.

But, then, we just had to come back to the beginning of the story. The Medieval times' crusades. Shinichi was part of them and this meant that he would be away from Ran. But he promised, that he would return to her. And she promised that she would remain faithful to him- even without the help of a cursed chastity belt.

And he did.

"Shinichi!" Ran said, assuring herself that the one particular knight in a shining armor was him. She afterwards leapt into his arms and smiled delightfully upon his safe return and opened the part of the helmet that would lead to the lips she wanted to kiss.

"Uh… I'm not Shinichi Kudo, princess. That's him, right beside me," the ugly knight pointed out.

Shinchi removed his helmet, revealing a very dirty… him. "Uh, hi, Ran. I've come back!"

Upon realizing such an embarrassment, Ran didn't mind of it and leapt down the other knight and kissed Shinichi even though he looked terrible.

Shinichi pushed Ran away after a few seconds of enjoying the kiss. "Ran, I'm so dirty. You'll get your dress dirty!"

"I don't care, even if you're a knight in shining terror. I'm excited you're back!" she said with a big wide smile.

"I'm excited too."

"So… have you told your father about our engagement?" he asked.

"Of course I did! He may have not liked it, since the power as king would be passed on already, but I got to him… and he said yes! He even told me we could marry as soon as you get home!"

"Yeah, that's because she threatened me with her kicks…" the king appeared to them in a very upset tone. "But what can I do? The throne's not really for me. I only became king because of Eri."

The queen then came out from nowhere.

"Wait? They made up already? After five years?" Shinichi asked Ran.

Ran nodded.

_**A/N: Sorry for a crappy ending, but I just didn't know how to end it. And I just loved the pairing KogoroXEri that I had to make them… make up. :P Anyway, if I put the wedding, I think it wouldn't be that interesting. Oh well. So, guys… you know what I'm about to say! R&R!!! And suggest as well. :P **_


	4. A Pirate's Life For Me

_**Good day/ night to you all! So here's the next installment of Eratastic! For this chapter… it's the Pirates Era! Sure, there really isn't such a called era, but I think you guys get what I'm saying. Anyway, I would like to thank my friend, Ren for helping me out with the plot because I had an extreme case of writer's block. Sure, I'm not usually struck by it because my thoughts are really random, which helps me think of a lot of different plots, but… I don't know, because of the stress, my mind isn't working that well. My grades have been quite… how do I say this? Downhill lately, I guess. And well, it's kind of hard writing, when you're depressed about your grades, that is. Luckily, seeing the card made me better. I like my grades. :D Anywho, sorry for rambling too much already. You guys must want to start with the story, huh? So that's what I'll exactly do! Hope you guys like it. R&R for comments and suggestions. Thank you.**_

Not so long ago, there lived a group of notorious powerful pirates that traveled the world for treasures beyond one's imagination. They traveled high the mountains. And sought low to the deepest caves. But as they years had gone by, they were notorious no more, and their skills slowly diminished.

Their last leader or shall we say, captain, was a girl. And her name was Kazuha Toyama. She inherited the honor of being captain from her deceased father, and even though, it wasn't really her initial dream to be a pirate, she swore revenge to the one who killed her father.

Anyway, she was a feisty woman of young age, filled with beauty, strength and brilliance. Actually, you wouldn't really mistake her for a pirate. She was actually just a teenager at the age of seventeen and was the youngest pirate in the crew. Just like a muse held captive, not really the captain if you look at it.

But, with her talent and brains, the pirates traveled to become notorious once more. They traveled to docks, and searched for sources of treasure. They battled the Royal Navy to reveal the truth of such treasures. And they did their best to gain power and riches.

One day, in the dock of Andalusia, the pirates came to find more information on their current target, the shards of the world's biggest pearl, which one shard can make a whole pirate crew, filthy stinking rich. They were ordered to split up by the captain and to find out about the said pearl shards. Kazuha even decided to search by herself.

But she had no luck. People had said that the shards of the pearl were just a myth and that she was just wasting her time. Though, this didn't stop her. She didn't give up. She was still determined to find someone who had a clue in the place.

Unfortunately, inverting a common expression, it becomes, 'every silver lining, there is a cloud'. And of course, having said this, trouble had obviously come upon Kazuha. A group of gangsters had sighted her from a distance. Kazuha, as said was beautiful, and of course, the gangsters wanted to toy with her. They approached her and surrounded her. "Well, well. What is a pretty civilian girl like you, doing in this area, all alone?" one fat hairy gangster said.

"I'm sorry, I don't think I need to answer that question," she answered fiercely. "Now, if you would all politely please stay out of my way, then we won't have a problem," she continued, acting all calm, which really annoyed the hell out of the gangsters.

"Underestimating us, huh, poppet? Well, let's see what you'll do. Hold her down!" the apparent leader, who wore a lot of jewelries, said. Soon, his minions did hold Kazuha down. She may have been a captain of the pirates, but she was defenseless all alone, and with that many men holding her down. They held her in all the right places. She couldn't even move an inch.

She started to panic. "Help! Help! Somebody-" But it was no use. Someone put a piece of cloth over her mouth to stop her from whining and to not make a scene.

Luckily, a handsome yet strong civilian passed by. His arms were hard and muscular. His eyes had a look of independence. And he was only of the age seventeen. With this, he looked like a fully pledged pirate, though he wasn't. Anyway, he saw what the gangsters were doing to poor, innocent, Kazuha, and decided to help her out. "What are you doing?! Let her go!"

One gangster with a wooden leg approached him. "Mine your own business, pirate!" he said, pushing the guy.

"I-am-not-a-pirate! I hate it when people say that! Now, this really is my business! How dare you call me a pirate!!!" the guy answered, simultaneously knocking that gangster out. He soon took out his sword and fought with the others that were left, which was about 8-10, excluding the leader.

Though he may be outnumbered, he was very strong and beaten each and every one of them. The only one left standing after only a minute or two was the leader. "Bring it on!" he said, making a crazy weird pose with his sword. Kazuha made a sweat drop and even wanted to laugh. The guy looked ridiculous!

Soon, the very ugly, hairy leader of the gangsters charged. And in a matter of seconds, the competitor won.

Kazuha tried to say something in delight, even though she still had the cloth stuck on her mouth. "Em… thack yoo!" was all that was understood.

The guy removed the cloth immediately and looked at her all concerned. "Aho, why are you here? This place is dangerous! Are you okay?" he asked while caressing her dirty face in the ruckus.

She panted for a while. "Thank you. Thank you. No, I'm okay. Anyway, where'd you learn to fight like that? You should join our crew! We could use someone like you," she started and removed the dirt off her attire. "So, my name's Kazuha Toyama. What's your name," she continued as extending a hand with a big smile. Obviously, there was an attraction between the two.

The guy smiled as well and accepted her hand. He shook it and answered all like a gentleman, unlike how he acted towards the gangsters before, "My name is Heiji Hattori. Nice to meet you, Kazuha."

"Anyway, why don't we get to my ship? We could talk about your membership to the crew there."

And they did. They went there and talked about Heiji's membership, which apparently shouldn't happen, since he wasn't really just a normal civilian but included in the Royal Navy, the pirates' arch enemy. That's why he hated being called a pirate by the gangsters.

However, Heiji was smart. Not only the graduate from school smart, but down to earth, cunning smart. He had nothing, and wanted everything. He even thought if he would be able to reveal the pirates' weakness, he could have a high position and have everything he wants. So he lied about his identity and made the pirates to believe that he was on their side, but truthfully, going to sell them out.

---

Every night, after meeting Kazuha, he would come to the pirate ship, to avail them of such information of the shards they were looking for. But, he exactly wasn't honest. He may give out information, but there was a trap he was setting for the pirates.

"I heard from the Royal Navy that they have a map of the location of the shards, and that they know how to assemble them. There's going to be a party, a few days from now I think. I'll try to know the details tomorrow. That may be a good time to attack them," he informed.

"Good. Very good, Heiji. You are an asset to the crew. You have served us well. I knew I didn't wrong in choosing you to be one of us," Kazuha stated.

He just smiled with a sweat, getting a little bit guilty. Kazuha believed her and she was so gullible. She's a girl, and she never wanted to fool a girl, especially a girl, that he was apparently having more deep feelings about. Sadly he let his material instincts overcome him.

One pirate suddenly pushed Heiji joyfully. "Good job, Heiji. Good job! It's nice to have you here. Soon, when we find the shards, we'll give you the position as assistant captain!"

His eyes widened._ "I could have what I want with them as well? Assistant captain, isn't so bad!" _he silently thought to himself.

He suddenly saw that Kazuha pulled something from her pocket. It was a golden necklace. "My father gave me this, when I was the assistant captain. He told me to keep it, to give it to someone I trust my life with. I may have only known you for a few days, but I know I can count on you. I owe my life to you, and you've helped us. This is the least I can do. Here," she explained and placed the pendant on Heiji's right palm. She afterwards went outside of the room they were in and just tried to clear her thoughts out.

"_How can I do this to such a kind girl???"  
_

Heiji followed, knowing that was what he should do. He put the pendant in his pocket, then approached Kazuha. "Are you sure about this? Me, being the assistant captain. I'm only a new member."

"I'm sure."

"But you barely know me." 

She turned to him and gave him a nod. "I know. But… I'm sure."

"Why? Why are you sure?"

"Because you're the only one, asides from the pirates who has ever helped me. Ironic, huh? Since you're a civilian," she explained with a half smile laid on her face.

Heiji went beside her. "That's all?" 

"There's something else. But… promise me to not tell anybody," she whispered softly to his eyes, her lips touching his right ear which made him quiver.

He nodded all perturbed.

She continued to whisper. "Well… it may sound unleader-like, but… I guess maybe because… I've grown attached to you already. And if you become assistant captain, that means you won't leave us once we get the treasure." She timidly blushed yet stared at Heiji directly in the eye afterwards.

He gulped with a sweat. What she just said seemed more than friendly. "Attached?"

She looked down in embarrassment and just nodded without looking at him.

Heiji looked to the sight of the town and sighed. "Well… you may say… I've grown attached to you as well," he admitted.

Kazuha immediately turned around. _"He said what?"  
_

"I've grown up here. But never really got friends. My family died as soon as I was born, in a war with pirates. Sure, I may have hate pirates before, that's why I hate being called one, but I guess, meeting you and the crew… it showed me, you're good persons. And… I guess, maybe being a pirate isn't so bad."

Kazuha placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry about your parents. And I'm sorry for being a pirate."

Heiji looked at her somberly, took her hand and smiled. He then looked at the stars above. "You didn't do anything. Besides, they're happy in heaven. I'm sure they're not in Davy Jone's locker," he joked.

This made Kazuha giggle.

"I like how you laugh," he said and turned around to her. "I-like-it-a-lot" he drawled in a slow and clear manner. Next thing you know, he kissed Kazuha in passion.

She of course kissed back.

An urge and the initial chemistry to begin with opened up between them. They kissed in total zeal, in total obsession, in total passion. And as their lips parted, there laid smiles of happiness. They stared at each other with those blissful smiles and next held hands to tell the whole crew.

---

The crew eventually accepted their relationship, and everybody was of course happy for the captain and the assistant captain. Their happiness were so beautiful to watch, they cared for each other and was perfect for each other. They themselves, thought of that as well. Even Heiji who apparently forgot for quite a while his real intention towards the pirates.

---

But the day had come where the pirates would attack the Royal Navy, the party Heiji had talked about before.

The day before this, the Navy got ready on the assault and the General talked to Heiji on some important matters.

"Soldier!" he sternly called out.

Heiji turned around and as soon as he saw the General, the whole plan flashed into his own eyes. "Uh… yes, sir?" was all he could say. He didn't even give a salute from recalling what foolishness he had done.

He started all serious. "Tomorrow's the big day. I want you to know as much as you can on the pirate's final plan." But afterwards made a smile. "After this, when we lay hands on the infamous pirates, you can finally get the position you've been working hard for."

Heiji was speechless. He had forgotten all about it. His betrayal to the crew. His betrayal to Kazuha.

"Well, I hope a report later at night. Carry on," the General said with a raise brow and just left Heiji in such a crushed moment

"_Such a genius Heiji… such a genius. Great."_

---

He had no choice but come back to the pirates as soon as he could, who were busy preparing for the important day in attacking their number one rivals.

Heiji got so guilty, so irritated at himself, that he wanted to say something. At first, he though using Kazuha to an advantage seemed such a good thing. It could gain him the power he had always wanted.

But now… it seemed so wrong. He… he really loves Kazuha. And he can't believe on what he was about to do. He even felt sooo indignant with himself, so annoyed. What kind of guy is he to use a girl? 

Heiji pulled Kazuha who just passed by him. "Uh… Listen, Kazuha… I think we need to… talk," he found it hard to utter.

Kazuha looked at him all clueless. "Sure. Okay."

He made a big breath. "Uh… you see… I haven't…" 

Kazuha looked at him closely. "You haven't?"

"I… haven't been quite honest with you."

She widened her eyes. She knew this thing he was going to be honest with wasn't good, since hearing the tone of Heiji's voice. Nervous, scared, uneasy. "You don't love me?" she asked sadly.

"What?! No, of course I do. It's just… uh…"

"You're leaving me?!" she asked getting even sadder.

"NO! Not that! I'll never leave you. Uh… it's uh… I have something to tell you about my identity. I'm not what you think you are."

"Then what are you? You aren't human? I already know that. Sometimes I think you're a crossbreed from a chimpanzee and a dog," she joked.

Heiji gave her a sarcastic look. Very sarcastic. This cause Kazuha to just laugh. Really laugh. "I'm sorry, continue," she said after getting a breath.

Heiji made another big breath. "I… I lied to you Kazuha. I lied to you about my identity." 

"What do you mean?" 

"I'm not just an ordinary civilian…"

"I kind of noticed that when you beat up those gangster, aho," she said with a grin. "You're a strong civilian," she continued, holding his strong arm, filled with muscles, yet was still clueless.

He gulped. "No… I'm… I'm part of the Royal Navy."

Kazuha's stopped moving. She didn't breathe. She didn't speak. She did nothing. She couldn't believe it.

"And… to make things worse… I kinda sold the crew off, by… giving information on your…plans," Heiji stated.

This made Kazuha to look really angry.

Heiji just decided to digress to cover up his uttered confession. "But don't worry, I'll deceive them. And besides…I still love you. And the crew! You guys have been like family to me! I'll choose you guys over them! Don't worry! I mean, I love how the ship is so cool and so strong! I love knowing that I could travel with you guys! I love-"

She stopped his nonsense of a talk in strong emotion. "Stop it, HEIJI! AHO! STOP FOOLING ME! You used me. And I can't forgive you for that. You told me you loved me and-"

"I do love you! That's why I'm telling this to you!" 

"This is just part of your plan! You know what? Leave now! Just leave! I won't fight you, nor tell the crew to fight you. Just get out of my ship and we won't have a problem!!!" Kazuha said as tears continuously rolled off both of her cheeks.

Heiji wanted to say something, or do something really romantic, like hug her, or better, kiss her. But he couldn't get himself to do so. He hated himself for such erroneous doings, and because of this, he knew he didn't deserve Kazuha after fooling her. He just walked away as she told him, with a definite sad face.

---

Kazuha wanted to call off the whole plan to get the shards. But she can't do that. She thought the crew would look low on her because she can't handle being heartbroken. It obviously didn't look professional, or such a leader trait. She thought they'll hate her for putting her feelings before the sake of the crew. So she put on a stone face instead, pretended like nothing happened, and just went on with their plan.

They changed it a bit of course, since Heiji knew exactly what they were going to do, and she knew that he told every single detail of their plan. It was hard, but they did it.

---

The pirates attacked in a different time, a different way, yet, the Royal Navy was ready. The General wanted to be careful, since he saw that Heiji wasn't to be totally trusted, especially with his actions the day before.

"Darn! How could they know?" Kazuha said to herself.

The Navy and the pirates then dueled. They all fought with their swords, with all their weapons, all their might. But… the Navy had the upper hand. The place being their territory, they had tricks in their sleeves. It even looked like they were going to win.

One by one, pirates were lost, injured, some even died. But from a distance, a shadow of a man appeared. Concerned was he of seeing the fight of two parties.

"I'll kill your race, pirates!" the General stated as he fought the captain of the pirates, Kazuha. "Though, you're welcome to survive, my dear. If you bow down before me," he continued, smiling flirtatiously on Kazuha. Such a nauseating feeling that must have been for Kazuha, having an old man in his forty's, flirting with a teenager like her.

"Never!" she answered and attacked him with more power and speed.

"Pity, because…" He circled his sword with Kazuha's and flipped her sword to the air. Kazuha fell to the ground in surprise of an attack. Next, the General pointed his sword to her throat, as she was vulnerable. "Don't you know… I defeated your father? So that means, it'll be easy to beat you."

Heiji had it. He saw Kazuha again in danger. He didn't think once or twice. He went to the ruckus without more ado and fight.

Going back to the fight, Kazuha trembled of the General's statement. "You killed my father?" 

"Yes. Great man and fighter he was, actually. What a shame and what a loss for the pirates, isn't it? Oh well, I guess it's a shame and a loss to kill you as well. Like father, like daughter."

Kazuha may have been really powerless, but she wouldn't give up. "You may kill me, but the pirates will win! You'll see!"

Swiftly, Heiji appeared with his sword, acting all flamboyant with his new attire, and even stroke a pose. _"He must have bought it with the money he got from the Navy," _Kazuha thought with half moon eyes.

"So nice to join us, Heiji," the General greeted, as he made a bow with his other hand-the one not holding the sword, which was still pointed to the defenseless Kazuha.

"Yeah, nice to join them," he answered and immediately thrust his sword to the General's chest.

The General fell down in pain. He tried to say something. Something about Heiji's betrayal. But… he bled so much and couldn't do a thing but try to stop the blood from coming out of his wound. Though, it was too much even for the strong General. He instantly lost consciousness.

By this, Heiji came to Kazuha and pulled her up from the ground.

"You saved me. Why?" Kazuha asked all perplexed.

"I told you. I love you… Will you ever forgive me, aho? Seriously, why would you fight the General! You're just a girl! You may be the captain but-"

Heiji got cut-off. Kazuha kissed him to shut him up.

Soon after, the pirates gained trust in themselves, seeing their captain happy in kissing the assistant captain. They knew everything would be fine, so they fought better, and even won the battle.

---

By the ship, after defeating the so-called 'Royal Navy' the pirates, each holding a shard of the world's biggest pearl, they all then looked at it with pure bliss and contentment. Not only because they got it, but because they got their assistant captain back as well. Who, if I did not mention, will join in their journeys from now on.

"We finally did it, my captain," one said.

"And we've finally avenged my father," Kazuha answered. "Though, you didn't have to kill him, Heiji," she directed to the guy right beside him.

Heiji shot her a raised brow. "I didn't kill him. I know where to strike my sword! I just let him loose his consciousness."

"That's good," Kazuha said and stole a fast kiss from him.

Heiji smirked and gave out a chuckle. "I know I'm good looking, but you don't have to do that."

Kazuha stepped on his foot. "Aho!"

"What do you mean aho? You're the aho here!"

And they continued fighting as the crew watched.

"It's true love isn't it?" one fat pirate asked, as the two were striking insults to each other.

"Yeah," everybody nodded in agreement.

"Hey, shouldn't we tell them that the map to put the shards back together is still missing?" a very gaunt pirate, his left eye with a cover from the fight, asked.

"Let them be. I'm sure we'll find it eventually," one answered.

_**A/N: Yes, such a sucky ending. But I just wanted to point out that Heiji would never kill a person! He demands for justice, no matter what era he could be in, so he'll never kill anyone! Maybe for self defense though, and defending Kazuha. Anyway, hope you all liked it, because I personally liked this, even there isn't really as I could say… much humor in it, like the other chapters. Oh well. BTW, sorry for those expecting for it to be something like POTC! But I didn't really want to copy it, since it isn't really mine. I wanted to be original as well, though the plot wasn't totally mine, but partially from my friend, Ren. Haha. Anywho… R&R please! Give suggestions for the next era! It's KaitoXAoko next time! Clickie that purple button! You know you guys want to! XD **_


	5. A Rebirth of Change

_**So I would like to credit my friend Mina (one of those who helped me out with the DC Trilogy before, BTW) for helping me think of a plot! I really think this is a great idea, and I hope you guys like it as well. Though, I can't promise my 100 percent on this. A little bit depressed on finding something out, so I think it'll affect my writing. Anyway, please R&R even though that's the case. **_

The Renaissance era was known for the immerging talents of well… talented individuals. The painters, the architects, the sculptors, the writers, the musicians, all forms of art that man could think of. Well, maybe even more.

Once there lived a blonde red eyed handsome man by the name of Hakuba Saguru. He was a very talented person. He could paint, sculpt, write, compose and more. Though, he was most known of his talent in painting. He had painted a lot of well-known masterpieces actually, A Night in Paris, The Heart at Night, Her Sweet Caress and Amidst the Pavement.

And he had the one thing most important to him. Well, almost.

Her name was Aoko Nakamori, his fiancé. Aoko was a very pretty girl, though untidy at times, proven by her shaggy hair. But she was really pretty, inside and out. She was cheerful, loving and kind, all that a guy could wish for. Hakuba was definitely lucky of having her as a fiancé. I wish I could say the same for Aoko having Hakuba as her fiancé.

Aoko didn't like Hakuba in any romantic way. They were childhood friends, maybe even best friends, but it remained just like that. They may have been really close but Hakuba was the only one who developed feelings. Ironically, Aoko still didn't know that until now. She only thought the reason that their parents set them up was because they knew they were really close and because Aoko's family needs money. By marrying Hakuba, their family could have a better life.

---

Hakuba would usually paint Aoko, always using her as his model. He would paint her different views, different emotions. They may not be his bestsellers, but for him, it was his best works.

And when the notorious thief of the Renaissance era came to Venice, Italy, all the artists became alarmed, including Hakuba. This thief would steal the works of famous artists, would sometimes keep it, sometimes throw it away, sometimes return it. However, no matter what he did, even if he returned it, nobody liked it at all. And Hakuba wouldn't want this to happen.

He hid all his paintings away in secret rooms and passages, but one by one, they got stolen. Even those with the portraits of Aoko.

"God! I can't believe this? Why does this Kaitou Kid have to steal paintings? Specifically mine! My masterpieces?!!! What does he want with them? He returns some of them, but it's all ruined! He removed the frames!" Hakuba exclaimed.

Aoko put a hand on his shoulder. "Cool down, Hakuba. Don't fret. I'm sure the police will capture him soon enough."

"How can they?! They don't even have leads! All they know is that he wears a white tuxedo and a monocle!!! Well, that and that he uses magic to steal," he explained.

"Anyway, why don't you just work on another artwork of yours? I'll agree to be your model again," Aoko said, thinking that the only reason Hakuba wanted to draw her because she was easy to draw, and because that it would help him. She didn't know the reason he does so was because he was madly in love with her.

"Fine, come, let's get going to the bathroom," he said as he put his hand on Aoko's then pulled her. "I'll draw you there. I'm sure that thief won't steal my works there nor bother us."

Aoko had no choice but to follow.

---

And Hakuba drew Aoko for the nth time she could recall.

After doing such, Aoko came back to her room and lied on her ever soft bed. She really didn't like modeling for Hakuba since it was such a pain and a nuisance, standing or sitting for hours in the same position. She just had to suggest that to cheer him up.

Suddenly, as her eyes were about to close, and she was about to meet with tranquil slumber, a bump on her terrace door occurred. She woke up and opened the door, and saw the infamous Kaitou Kid on the doorstep of her terrace.

"You!?!" she gasped.

Kaitou Kid quickly pulled her inside then put a hand on her mouth. "Please don't rat me out. I won't hurt you," he stated in a soft tone.

Aoko nodded.

"I'll let go of my hand if you promise not to scream pretty miss, okay?" he asked.

She nodded again.

Kaitou did as promised and Aoko also didn't scream.

"Why are you here?" the lady asked whispering.

He took off his white top hat. "I'm escaping from the guards. They're out to catch me."

Aoko took his hat from him and observed it, trying to comprehend how he could do magic with the hat. "But… tell me, why do you steal in the first place?" she next asked.

He this time took off his white long cape. Aoko took it as well and observed it. "It's not that I like to steal. I'm just looking for something. It's a very dangerous gem, and I'm trying to get it before some bad forces. The gem grants eternal life, and they would kill just to get that. If I get it before them, then I'll destroy it, nothing bad happens. Though, I don't know exactly where it is. All I know it is in a piece of artwork."

Aoko crossed her arms as she rose an eyebrow. "What makes you think I'll believe you?"

"Oh contraire, Madame," the thief started then went closer to Aoko. "I know you'll believe me," he continued in a flirtatious tone and caressed her cheek.

Aoko blushed immensely. She walked back a few steps. "What are you doing?" she nervously said, sweating a lot.

Kaitou Kid smiled happily. He afterwards took off his whole outfit, revealing a casual outfit. (Well at least it was casual in their time) "You're going to tour me around the city."

Aoko fell down from thinking so bad about the guy. "Eh? That's all? But… what makes you think I'll tour you around the city? Why do you have to anyway?"

He put an arm on her shoulder. "Weren't you listening? I'm looking for the gem. If I should know what to steal, I should scout out first. Besides, I send out notices before I steal something, to be fair."

"But you still didn't answer why I'll help you out."

He kissed her quickly on the cheek. "I just know you will. You're a kind person right? Doing the right thing is what you live for."

Aoko could just remain speechless and still blushing. After you knew it, Kaitou Kid, or Kaito, pulled her out to the streets already.

---

Aoko was still perplexed on the thief's motives. As they were walking by the streets of Venice, she tried to think it over. _"He must be fooling me, using me. I have to apprehend him to the police already," _she thought to herself.

"Don't give me that look. You wouldn't hand me over to the police, would you? I thought you would help me," Kaito unexpectedly said.

She got startled. _"How did he know what I was thinking? Is he a mind reader or am I that just easy to read? Impossible! Hakuba can't even read that I don't want our marriage to happen, and he's my best friend! How can he know?"_

He smirked. "You're so readable. What you're thinking is all over your face."

She turned around. "I am not!"

"Whatever. Hey, look! The museum, maybe there would be good artworks there, huh?"

She crossed her arms. "Whatever!"

---

They entered the place and scouted for possible artworks to steal. It was hopeless, Kaito knew that the others were fakes and wasn't the one he was looking for. Until, he saw a portrait of Aoko.

"That's you isn't it?" he pointed out.

"Yeah. My… fiancé is a painter. He made that," she shyly answered.

Kaito frowned a bit, getting a bit sad from the word 'fiancé'. "Yeah, I know. I've stolen a couple of times from him. He must be pretty ticked off from me, huh?" he joked, changing his mood.

"Listen! I won't… hand you to the police, if you don't steal from him anymore. How do you know which paintings to steal anyway? They all look the same."

"It's a gem, and it must sparkle shouldn't it? All the paintings, sculptures, and other forms of art I steal have something sparkling in it," he explained.

"Then… why steal the paintings that have me in it? I don't wear anything sparkly. And Hakuba doesn't add anything sparkly. Well, none that I can recall."

Kaito looked down.

"Answer me, Kaito!"

He made a fake smile. He didn't want to smile. He just forced it. "Because you remind me of someone."

"And who's that someone?" she straightforwardly asked.

"It's pretty blatant, can't you see? You remind me of…"

"Of???!!!" she sounded annoyed. "Just tell me! I won't be mad. No matter how old that girl is! Or if he's a guy! If I look like your mother, your grandmother that died, or even your great grand-"

"You look like my first love!" he blurted out.

And she was speechless and blushed in dark burgundy.

He rubbed his nose. "Well, I guess… that's how she'll look like now." He paused for a big breath. "Anyway, thanks for coming with me here. Don't worry, you won't see me anymore if you don't want to. And I won't steal from your fiancé anymore. Well, unless he has what I'm looking for. Ciao!" he said then ran away, still faking a smile.

Aoko was left all perplexed.

---

Days turned into weeks. Weeks turned into months. And Aoko never saw Kaitou Kid ever since. She would hear from him in the news, stealing portraits, sculptures, arts and more. But she never got to see him again.

"I guess that thief finally stopped annoying me. It's been three months already since he hasn't stolen anything from me," Hakuba stated to Aoko, sitting by her terrace. "So, are you ready? It is a few hours from now when my greatest and most sublime masterpiece will be unraveled.

"I'll catch up. Go on," she sounded sad.

Hakuba then went down but closed the door first.

Aoko's eye slid a tear. It wasn't only the unraveling of Hakuba's masterpiece today. It was also the day before her wedding.

As said before, she didn't want to get married to Hakuba. She sees him only as a friend. But now, she had no choice. Her family needed money, and Hakuba was the only one who could grant it.

She sobbed, she cried, she ruined her makeup in sadness. But as the day was a Tuesday, the same from the day she met Kaitou Kid, they saw each other again.

The thief came climbing to her terrace, and greeted her with his obnoxious yet heart-melting smile. "Why is a pretty girl like you, crying? Now, now, we wouldn't want such beautiful façade to be ruined by make-up, would we?"

Aoko looked up to him with her eyes all puffy and red. Yet he didn't care what she looked like. He still saw the first love and the only love he knew.

She hugged him tight from happiness. He didn't speak a word. No words were needed. The hug was all that mattered. It explained everything. His coming for her explained everything as well.

"I thought I would never see you again," Aoko said in hope.

"Well… I kinda need to break my promise," he said then scratched his head. "Two of them actually."

She broke the hug and looked at him oddly. "What do you mean?"

"I need to steal from Hakuba. He may have the gem I've been looking for, Pandora. I'm sorry."

Aoko flustered madly. "Is that the only reason you're here?"

He held both of her shoulders, and stared at her straight in the eye. "Of course not. I'm here for you. But I need your help. I need that painting."

"But I don't even know what that painting is. He just says it's his best work."

Kaitou Kid changed back to normal Kaito. "Well I know what it is. And you'll be surprised to know what it is. Come on, we have to get there, you have to get me in," he said as he pulled her out of the room.

"Wait! I look horrible!" she exclaimed.

A sudden puff of smoke appeared between them. Kaito showed her a mirror after. "There! You look even more beautiful!"

She did look better and really beautiful. She smiled for a second, but was curious how it happened. "How did you-"

"A magician never reveals his secrets. Anyway, come on!" he said and pulled her again.

---

Kaito and Aoko entered the room with the painting immediately. Aoko helped to let Kaito in, and right away, they saw the painting Hakuba was boasting about. It was an enormous painting of Hakuba and Aoko kissing. And both of them were wearing gems. Hakuba wore a ring, and Aoko wore a ring and a necklace. That must be why Kaito wanted the painting.

"I… I can't believe it. This is his greatest masterpiece? That means… he really does love me. I never knew. But… how could he have done it? I… never modeled that way for him… "

"Imagination is a person's best gift," Kaito said seriously.

"Wait, are you really going to steal the painting? It's too big. And you haven't given out a notice that you'll be stealing it," she asked.

"Who says I haven't?" he arrogantly said. "Anyway, I have to get ready. Excuse me, mademoiselle," he stated, and then kissed Aoko's hand. Afterwards, she left her.

"Hey Kaito!" she called out.

Kaito turned around. "What?"

"Promise me that I'll see you again. Before tomorrow!"

He chuckled. "Of course I would. I won't let you get married to that egomaniac!"

"How do you know he's one?"

"He's one what?"

"An egomaniac?"

"I just have a feeling. As if I knew him before. Besides, it's pretty blatant, isn't it?" he chuckled.

And off he went after saying that, running away, preparing to steal Hakuba's best work of art.

---

A big scream was heard after five minutes to ten, and Aoko came to see where it happened. He saw Hakuba holding a note, his eyes in absolute terror.

"Hakuba, what's wrong?" she asked.

He shook his head as if losing something precious. "Kaitou Kid is going to steal my painting." He then changed emotion and was determined to catch Kaitou Kid. "But I won't let him! Aoko, this is my wedding gift to you! I won't let him steal this," he explained.

Lights suddenly dimmed, until it was pitch black. Everybody panicked. They didn't know what to do. Hakuba was terrified as well.

But the lights were gone for a mere ten seconds and came back on. As that happened, the best painting Hakuba had ever done was gone.

Everybody became shocked. Eyes widened, mouths did as well. Gasps were heard, 'oh no's, how could this be's' as well.

Hakuba looked all around, and then saw from above the Kaitou Kid that caused the commotion. "Arrest him officers!" he called out.

All the police that were there went up to the building and Hakuba and Aoko did as well. They found Kaitou Kid and chased him, ready to apprehend him for his actions. Hakuba and the police worked together, trying to corner the infamous thief in the middle. And they did. The pursuit stopped as the thief had nowhere to run, trapped in the middle of a circle, surrounded by Hakuba and the police.

"Where is my painting!? Tell me and give it to me, then I'll let you escape," Hakuba lied.

"No, I don't believe you. And I can't do that. Aoko, I found Pandora, it was in Hakuba's painting. It was the red amulet you were wearing," he stated.

Hakuba turned to his fiancé. "Aoko? You know him?"

She pleaded. "Hakuba, please let him go. He isn't causing harm. He just needs to destroy Pandora for mankind's sake."

Hakuba went near the thief in anger. He felt that Aoko had already liked the thief. He wouldn't let that happen. He knew her before him, there's no way he could let that happen. "Who are you?! It's time to reveal yourself!" he said and put off his monocle and hat.

Everybody gasped in astonishment. "You… I know you! You're that kid! But… my parents told me you died already!"

Kaito's eyes widened. "That means… you and Aoko are my childhood friends. I'm supposed to be her… fiancé. She is my first love."

Hakuba fell down to his knees. "I can't believe it. I thought… without you, she may to learn to love me. But-"

"What's going on!? How do you two know each other?" she asked, not understanding anything.

Nobody answered her.

"Answer me!" she emoted.

Hakuba finally stood up and went to Aoko. He grasped both of her hands. "You may not remember because your parents helped you forget. But I wasn't always your best friend. Actually, he was. His parents just died and everybody thought he was dead already as well. You were supposed to be married to him. But my parents had to kill them. At first I didn't believe it, but I later found out the truth. And… they were also the ones that robbed your money, so that you would seek for my help. I told them not to do it, but they knew I loved you so much, and said that I could have you if I cooperated. I'm sorry, Aoko. They did that because they loved me to much, and wanted me to have you."

She smiled and hugged him. "It's okay. Because I'm happy you told me the truth. Besides, it isn't your fault to fall in love. We can't choose who we love. That's what I want to say as well."

Hakuba started to cry.

"Hey, Hakuba!" Kaito called out.

Hakuba looked at him as he cleared the tears off his face.

"Here," he tossed Pandora to him. "I'll give you the honor to destroy it."

"I don't exactly know what this will do, but if you could forgive me, then okay," he said then clenched it as hard as it can so that it would break.

Kaito nodded.

And as Hakuba finally opened his palm, remained was only debris of the once powerful Pandora. The wind unexpectedly then passed by, and blew the pieces away.

---

The next day, Hakuba and Aoko's wedding was cancelled, and was sure that it would never happen. Hakuba's parents were captured by the police for their deeds as well.

Though, a party still happened on the special day. Kaito asked for Aoko's hand in marriage.

He knelt down before her, while they were in the terrace, on a sunny Wednesday morning. "Aoko Nakamori, as I have been searching for you all this time, will you grant me the favor of marrying me?" he handsomely asked.

She knelt down and whispered something in his ear. "Of course I would, my dear. Your fear of fish won't let me dare deny your request."

He got shocked of her answer, since she finally remembered their childhood days, the times when he was scared of fish. Well he actually still was, but it was still shocking that she would remember. They were still small kids then, and now, they have grew a lot.

But then, he didn't dare make a joke about her statement. He just stood up, and she stood up as well. He pulled her into his arms, and held her waist. He kissed her passionately, luscious lips uniting. They kissed in passion and love. It didn't matter that they just met again, all that mattered was they were together again.

---

And by Aoko's room, carefully watching the lovers kiss was Hakuba who was the opposite of total bliss. He was sad, defeated and scared. He knew Aoko never loved him. But in his woe, as he left the room, he bumped into a girl of beauty. Her hair was of raven color and a tint of dark purple. Her eyes were passionate and of auburn color. He flirted with him, gave a little compliment. And soon as you know, they walked on and formed a relationship after then. Who says he couldn't have been happy? He suffered as well, and finally found out who was meant for him.

---

_**A/N: I guess there wasn't any funny happening then, huh? I'm sorry. As I told you, I'm pretty depressed. Kinda hard to put humor on it. Well, anyway, hope you guys liked it. Please R&R! **_


	6. Welcome to the Sixties

**_Hello there dear readers. Upon noticing that the last chapter had no tinge of any comic thing… I'm planning to make this chap really comic, since I feel a lot better! Though, to do that, it won't be ShinichiXRan or KaitoXAoko or HeijiXKazuha in their past lives._**

_**I consider this as a special, since the characters aren't in a particular era, but will be acting on a stage play, in the sixties! The Movie, not the Musical- Hairspray!!! Though… I think that's almost the same thing. :P **_

_**Anyway, my thoughts on it? It's fairly a nice movie, and I very much like the song Welcome to the Sixties, so thus the fanfic. **_

_**However, I found it actually a bit hard to think of a next ShinXRan chapter, but then, I asked a lot of people, and they wanted me to write about the Sixties. I had no idea what happened then, but! I remember the song and the play. So, sorry if this is a bit unoriginal. But I try to make it not the play but… behind the scenes and just part of the play. **_

_**Well, anyway, let's start.**_

The Teitan High School Drama Club was in such a big slump.

They needed a new catch, for people to enter their club for the number of members was decreasing tremendously.

They were seen as a boring, if not hectic, club.

So, the whole club had a meeting. They planned out what they should do. They were desperate.

"Hmmm… what if we don't act? What if we show people that we can make anyone act! Produce, be directors! That way, everybody would want to join!" one suggested.

It was a pretty unique idea. And it could actually work. Then, a critique had to ask, "And who do you suggest we direct? Who will act for us to get their attention?"

They all thought of who could be the actors. Until, it was clear who could play the roles. "The most popular people in school! Shinichi Kudo and Ran Mori can be the leads! With their ratings for both guys and girls, our play will be a hit! Besides, they've acted before. It isn't anything new for them."

Everyone grinned, even the critique. Such a great idea it was. It was immediately accepted.

_**The Next Day**_

"Why do we have to do this again?" Shinichi mumbled to the girl beside her as the president and lead director of the drama club were orienting them on what to do. He didn't really want to be in the play and especially didn't want to listen to the director's boring orientation.

Ready to whisper, she went near him and placed her right hand and mouth to his ear. "Well, since you were such a great actor before in that play where you took Sensei's part, they wanted you to do it again! And besides, the drama club really needs an attraction for their club," Ran explained to him.

He gave out a snort with matching rolling eyes. "Fine."

Suddenly, the director noticed something definitely wrong. She looked at the whole crew and said, "Oh no!!! There isn't any _Black_ person to play Seaweed!!! We can't do this without a _Black_! And it's so hard to find a _real Black _now!"

Shinichi made a devious grin. He knew who could play a Black. He was obviously not going to enjoy doing the play, but it would be more entertaining for him if one Heiji Hattori joined him as well. At least he wouldn't be alone. And by alone, not the only detective portraying such an un-detective part. "Don't worry. I can call someone for the part."

The frilly and utterly excited director jumped in front of Shinichi and hugged him. "Thank you! Thank you! You saved the show! Oh, and if you can, find us a Penny too. Please do so."

Shinichi looked at her in a questionable way. "What?"

"A girl that's a white to play as Seaweed's girlfriend character! It might as well be someone that _Black _knows. It would be better to direct people who know each other."

Ran became excited. "Ooooh! If you're calling Heiji, call, Kazuha too! Call Kazuha!!!"

He opened his cellphone and looked for Heiji's number. "Fine, fine!"

_**After a few hours, at the Boys' Dressing Room**_

"Why are we here again?" Heiji asked the detective of the east standing beside him who was wearing a sixties outfit as he himself was being suited into one.

Shinichi eyed him jokingly. "I asked for your help."

"I thought about a case!!!" he exclaimed in irritation. He was just tricked. He didn't like acting. It wasn't his cup of tea. Besides, it was bad enough to act in front of a school you didn't go to, but he just had to play a _Black _part. How insulting could that be? He knew he wasn't _that _Black.

Shinichi crossed his arms with a mischievous grin. "Never told you about a case. I told you I needed your help. You just hurried here."

Heiji's face looked infuriated. "Bah!"

_**Girls' Dressing Room**_

"Oh Ran, I'm a bit nervous. I never acted in stage before. Why'd you have to let me tag along?" Kazuha asked Ran, blushing and sweating in anxiousness.

Ran looked surprised yet smiled. "What?! You don't like the idea of acting a role of the girl that Heiji's character is crazy about?"

Kazuha blushed in total crimson. She shyly could utter a few words. "No… but-"

Ran cut her off. "Don't worry, there's a kissing scene in the play! That would help your stage fright," she pointed out.

Her friend blushed even more. "Kiss…!!!???!!!" she screamed out loud that it was heard at the Boys' Dressing Room. Apparently, that didn't calm her down but let her be scared even more.

---

_**Boys' Dressing Room.**_

Shinichi and Heiji heard the scream, and they knew who that was. It was obviously Kazuha.

"What's the girl screaming about now???" Heiji asked, trying to deny even to himself that he just heard Kazuha say 'kiss'. It was of course such an awkward topic.

Shinichi made a small laugh. Kazuha sounded clear enough for him. "She just said 'kiss', Hattori. She must have found out that you two have a kissing scene that's pretty intense."

That was not a joke. Heiji's face became rigid. That struck him out of nowhere and he was sooo surprised. He didn't know what the play was about. He didn't know there was this… intense kiss. "KISS!!!!!!!!!!???????????????" he exclaimed

---

This time, everyone in the cast heard Heiji's scream, even Kazuha.

A 'he knows', was actually said by her and Ran, followed by sighs.

As for their director…

"Oh… I am liking the characters! I think this play is going to be a success!" she rejoiced.

It seems for him, the tension in the air could help a lot in making the play a total success.

Well, we'll find out soon enough, huh?

---

_**Practice is in Session**_

The actors soon came out from the dressing rooms, and began to practice on stage. They shot it from the beginning, the scene where Tracy (Ran's role-who was very fat, that they had to put a fat suit on Ran) and Penny (Kazuha's role who's Tracy's best friend) were going to school and loving the new show in Baltimore, The Corny Collins Show.

After half an hour of practicing, Kazuha, who may have been a bit shy and soft-spoken, then finally had a chance to catch her breath, as her scene was officially over.

Yes, there were parts that she wouldn't be acting, but she had to appear immediately after a while.

Anyway, next was the time wherein Tracy would meet with Link (Shinichi's role) and go to 'Detention', where she'll meet the Blacks, including Seaweed (Heiji's role). Kazuha wasn't needed to play her role for a while.

Heiji first congratulated Kazuha on her work well done. "Nice job, 'zuha," he said with a smile. Yet, in the next second, he made a frown. "Now it's my turn. Curse that Kudo!" He then went for his position and played his part.

He didn't actually read the script, and just decided to play as awful as he can to be kicked out of the production. To his actual surprise, there was a scene that he should dance and sing. Someone should really emphasize to him that he was acting in a musical.

He saw that part on the time he was about to act it out. As said, he didn't read the script. "I'm going to… to… DANCE AND SING!?" he yelled out, in mixed emotions. He then shot a death glare to Shinichi. A 'you're going to die soon' look.

Shinichi got scared. He was thinking that maybe making Heiji act in their play wasn't such a good idea.

The director headed toward Heiji. She put her hands on his shoulder. "Don't worry. We're going to do our best and we're gonna make you dance and sing greatly! This is going to be the best musical ever made in the history of Teitan High!"

Her assistant made out a small remark. "It's the first musical ever made in the history of Teitan High."

"Whatever! Now, Heiji, let's tackle the dancing part first!"

He had no choice but dance. No matter how it pained him.

Kazuha, Shinichi, Ran and their other co-actors just laughed upon seeing Heiji dance. Boy, a turtle can dance way better than him. He had no tinge of coordination, rhythm or vibe.

After an hour of teaching Heiji to dance, they then began to teach him how to sing.

This time, it was different. Nobody laughed. Because his singing was utterly horrendous. Wishing it was over, people covered their ears and closed their eyes. But no, it went on for half-an hour. A treacherous thirty minutes it was.

Although, the one who felt really irritated was Heiji, himself. He knew he wasn't a performer. He accepted that wholeheartedly. How grateful was he that his part was finally finished once the director yelled cut.

Of course the director was finally relieved that it was finished too. "I think that's a wrap for today, whew!" he said then wiped of his sweat coming from everywhere. _"This is going to be harder than we thought. But… there's no backing down now. There isn't anyone else who can play Seaweed's part."_

_**Dinner**_

Ran had invited Kazuha for dinner, and of course Shinichi and Heiji would join them as well. And there, emotions were definitely tested.

They were eating silently, since the girls sensed that Heiji was still obviously mad at Shinichi for tricking him to act, _sing_ and DANCE in the play.

Shinichi was silent, since he knew Heiji could bite him anytime. Literally, bite him.

However, an entire mess had just begun when Shinichi dropped his fork near Heiji.

"Could you uh… please get that Hattori?" he tensely asked. Not talking to Heiji seemed impossible, so he just tried to do so.

Heiji took it, hiding his eyes and his emotions. Then he handed it over to Shinichi as he began to scream his head out loud. It was as if the fork was his hatchet and he was going to kill Shinichi with it. "WHY'D YOU HAVE TO LET ME JOIN THE PLAY!!!???"

Shinichi got really scared. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" he pleaded.

The girls, in the other hand could just hold Heiji off by his seat, or else he could have done something nasty that they would never imagine.

"Don't get angry, Heiji. Our drama club really just needed some help. And we were in need of someone who could play Seaweed. Shinichi just saw you as the best person for the job, isn't that right, Shinichi?" Ran stated.

Shinichi made a fast and agreeable nod.

"See, Heiji. Shinichi didn't ask you to act so that he could humiliate you," Kazuha explained.

However, the Detective of the East bowed his head. Boy, was he guilty. "I'm sorry, Hattori. I thought it would be a good joke."

They were all surprised. That was his original intention. Heiji just left him all offended, while Kazuha hurried to catch up with him.

All that was left was Shinichi and Ran, and that didn't even make things better for Shinichi.

"Ran, listen, I'm sorry. I know it wasn't such a good thing. But…"

"Shinichi!" she began to raise her voice. "How could you do that?!"

"I already told you guys, I'm sorry!" he pleaded once more.

"I don't think you're sincere enough," Ran said, standing up. "Shinichi, see you tomorrow." She afterwards left him and went home on her own.

"_God, you're a fool, Shinichi," _he thought to himself and bumped his head on the table purposely for a couple of times. _"Things couldn't possibly get worse."_

Out of the blue, the waiter came. "Sir, your bill," he said, giving him the piece of paper.

To Shincihi's realization, he just recalled that they were in a classy restaurant and ate such expensive food. That meant he was going to pay for the **whole** bill. Lucky him. Of course sarcastically speaking.

"_I guess I'm wrong. It can get worse," _he thought with a sigh then paid the waiter with almost all of his allowance. However rich he was, the place demanded for such money. His initial idea was just to treat Ran, not Heiji and even Kazuha.

_**The Next Day**_

The next day, Ran, Kazuha and Heiji didn't talk to Shinichi one bit. Shinichi was already sorry, and they wouldn't believe him. Whenever they would see him approaching them, they would run-off somewhere else or ignore him.

Shinichi on that time knew the feeling of getting the cold shoulder. And he knew he was totally getting it.

Although, he still did have some hope. No matter how mad his friends were with him, they had to talk because they were supposed to work together. That couldn't be avoided. Especially since the four of them were the main actors.

The director began to say, "Okay, places people! Hmm… let's practice where we've left. We're in the…" She turned a few pages of the script and saw the next scene to practice. "Tracy's audition! Okay, places people!!"

They all positioned themselves for the scene and began acting, singing, dancing and whatever.

But as they waited a couple of seconds, Kazuha and Ran began to converse.

"Ran… when are we going to forgive Shinichi? He said sorry a couple of times already. I think he's really sorry already," Kazuha asked Ran.

"Well I think he's not. Besides, Heiji should be the one to decide that," Ran answered, turning her attention to Heiji who was standing by the curtains, waiting for his cue.

"Okay, let's begin!" the director then said, letting the scene commence.

Ran and Kazuha did their part, and Shinichi did as well. Though, he wasn't really at ease dancing with another girl, specifically named Minami. The girl of his dreams was still mad at him and he couldn't bear being with another woman.

Of course, this made Ran angrier with him. And as the scene was finished, they had a break before Heiji enters the next scene. All of them where still there, since the next scene with _Negro Day._

Shinichi walked to Ran, who was by sitting at a corner, talking to Kazuha how irritated she was of Minami on how she was clinging herself too much to Shinichi. "Ran, are you gonna talk to me now?" Shinichi asked, luckily not hearing Ran's insults about Minami, which totally gives away her true feelings for him.

Ran stared at him with a pout. "Well, I guess I can't ignore you or run away from you. Fine, I forgive you."

He made a smile, though still knew something was up with her. "Thanks, Ran. But… are you still angry? Why are you looking at me like that?"

She turned around from him. "No, I'm not mad. I was just…" She thought for a while. She knew she was jealous, but never would admit it. Kazuha did as well, so she signaled her to make something up.

Ran turned around and looked at Shinichi seriously. "I was just wondering if you really are sorry."

He sighed and smiled once more. "Of course I am. And listen, I'll talk to Hattori. I hope he forgives me. Though, you two will help as well, right? You forgive me as well, right Kazuha?"

Kazuha made a nod.

"Great, then maybe we could have dinner again, and I can straighten things with Hattori."

Before any of the girls could say anything else, the crew then pushed or pulled them to their places, since the next scene was about to take place.

It was the part wherein it was Negro Day, and Heiji had to dance and sing once more.

Everybody hoped he danced and sing well already, since they didn't want to hear him ring their ears out. Plus, they were losing valuable time.

To everybody's surprise, he did well on that day. He should have. He actually practiced a lot after being embarrassed. The night before, he practiced his butt off to get all the dancing and the singing.

Kazuha then realized something. _"Heiji… so that's why you didn't want to talk about your problem. You stayed up all night to practice,"_

Heiji danced gracefully, and singed very well. He didn't want to flaunt anything, but yesterday's act was really just his attention to stink so hard. He was actually a great performer, even greater than Shinichi. Yes, he had a feeling this was the case, but he was only sure when he performed today since this was the first time he got the approval of others on his performance

Everybody who wasn't part of the scene was left awestruck. The other casts that were dancing and singing with Heiji were partially captivated by his act as well. They just tried their best to focus, since it would look unprofessional.

After the scene, the director ran to Heiji in total bliss and contentment. "You did a superb job, Hattori!"

His smile reached his nose in joy. But then she had to add, "If only you weren't black, I'd make you the star of the show!"

Heiji shot her an annoyed look. He didn't really like being called 'black'. Though, the 'star of the show' part he liked.

Good thing, Ran and the others saved the director. They came to Heiji and just congratulated him, letting the director be as far from Heiji as possible. Of course, including those others was Kazuha.

"Heiji, great job!!" Ran praised.

"It was nothing," he said, yet acted boastfully soon after. "I can't help if I'm talented."

Kazuha looked at him seriously. "You could just do what you did before because you enslaved practicing!!!"

He looked down, looking a bit sad. He knew she was right. He may have had talent, but he couldn't have done what he just did if he didn't practiced hard last night. "Fine… I just wanted to prove Kudo that I won't be humiliated anymore.

His best friend knew she had to do something. "Well, you proved him wrong now," she said, smiling. "But… don't you think you should forgive him now?"

Heiji diverted his attention to Shinichi who was by the other side of the stage, talking to Minami. "I will, soon. I just have to get my own piece of payback." He then made a conniving grin. He was going to embarrass Shinichi like he did to him, no matter what happened. And he had the idea in his head forming already, as he was staring at Shinichi and Minami all conniving.

The director then came from who knows where, surprising everyone. "Next scene, everyone! Cancelling Negro Day! Okay… hit it!"

In this scene, the four main characters were there again. And luckily for Ran, Minami wasn't.

They started to speak their lines, and all did as swell job. After a while, they finished the last scene for the day.

Heiji saw this as an opportunity for his payback.

He went near Shinichi and then pushed him by the back. He had thought of embarrassing him to the one person he loves, and the whole crew since he just kissed Minami, the girl that obviously liked him a lot. She didn't become Shinichi's original partner aka the antagonist for nothing. She forced her way just to have that role.

Anyway, going back to what happened, Shinichi fell _on _her. He was on top of her and they fell on the ground.

Oohs and Aaahs were heard. Yet Ran could just make a sad face. She ran outside, unseen by anyone except Kazuha. She ran to her, knowing that her friend needed her, or maybe just even a shoulder to cry on.

_**Outside**_

As Ran saw Kazuha, she hugged her, crying her tears out. She always knew that Shinichi had never had his first kiss. And she always wanted her to be his first kiss. But now, that would never happen.

"Kazuha… I'm sorry for crying on you like this. But… I just can't help it," she sounded.

Her friend tightened their hug. "Ran-chan, you know that was just an accident. You shouldn't overreact."

Ran broke the hug then wiped her tears. "I know. Demo… I already did. What will the others think when I go back inside? I shouldn't have overreacted nor ran away. Now Shinichi would…"

"Would what?" Kazuha asked curiously.

Ran looked down with a frail smile. "He'll know I like him."

_**Back Inside **_

Shinichi finally came to his senses and stood from his position to Minami. He blushed in embarrassment, nothing more. Of course he didn't feel anything for the girl.

He then turned to Heiji, who had caused such ruckus in the first place. "What is wrong with you Hattori?!" he screamed.

He tried to look all innocent. "I just tried to tell you that I forgive you, Kudo," he muttered out.

Though, Shinichi wasn't called the Detective of the East for nothing. _"A likely story," _he thought to himself. "I have my eye on you Hattori," he said then went to look for Ran, seeing she was nowhere in sight.

"Where's Ran?"

Everybody looked around for her. She wasn't at the stage, or backstage.

Heiji began to think that his brilliant idea wasn't so brilliant anymore. _"I think I may have gone a little too far." _

---

Luckily, Ran finally found the courage to go back in with Kazuha after numerous reasons and realizations.

"_That's right. Just act normal," _she said with a sigh, before entering the door to the stage.

As she came, everybody finally became relieved, happy or excited. At least she was found already.

"Ran, where have you been!?" Shinichi decided to ask.

"_Act normal."_

"Oh, just outside to have some fresh air with Kazuha. Right, Kazuha?" she stated then, looked at Kazuha, with eyes telling her to agree with her.

Kazuha finally got it after about a minute. "Ah! Yeah!"

Shinichi began to drag his feet and focus his whole attention to the floor to hide his crimson blush. "So… uh… you didn't see what happened?"

"What happened?" Ran asked trying to act naive, though deep down inside knew what he meant.

He scratched his head. "When Heiji pushed me and I uh… kissed and… landed on… Minami." His blush increased a whole lot more.

Ran still found it awkward. But she knew she shouldn't. She faked a smile. "Oh that. Yeah… I saw it before I left to go outside."

He tried to reason out of what happened. "You see, it was just an accident and uh… I-"

"You know, you two look like a great couple," Ran stupidly said, thinking that doing that was fine. She faked another smile.

Shinichi was startled. "What!?!"

She tried to add more info. "You two would look like a great couple. She's pretty and you're… uh… well… you're…smart."

He got shocked and at the same time insulted. "Well sorry if I'm not that good looking! And maybe I would ask her out!"

Ran's heart was crushed. But she had to go on with her act, not liking Shinichi. She set her feelings aside and tried to insult him even more. "Then ask her out!"

He raged in anger. He can't believe Ran would say those words. So all he could think of to tell her was, "Maybe I WILL!!!"

Heiji and Kazuha were by their backs, hearing the whole conversation. And they had the same reaction. _"What have I done!?"_

Then the director came again from nowhere, like he usually does. "Okay everyone! Last scene for the day! Let's do the protest march before leaving shall we?"

Everyone got set for the last scene, yet Heiji and Kazuha just stayed standing were they were, still really guilty for what they've done for Shinichi and Ran.

Ran saw this and went to them. "Uh guys? Didn't you hear? Next scene?"

The two snapped back to reality. "Uh… yeah… okay," they said in unison.

_**Dinner**_

The day's rehearsal was finally finished. Yet despite the little fight that Shinichi and Ran had, the four again went together for dinner, in another classy restaurant.

It was another silent meal like the other day. Kazuha didn't know what to do, and neither did Heiji. They knew that it was their own fault.

Shinichi and Ran didn't look like best friends but enemies because of them. So, they've decided. They had to do something.

"Uhmm, excuse me, I have to go to the comfort room," Kazuha asked, barely taking the tension. She needed some alone time to think.

"Uh, I'll come with you!" Heiji said, trying to get away from his seat and the same tension that Kazuha was feeling.

Though, what he just said was obviously not nice to hear. Everybody eyed him weirdly. "Heiji…?"

He looked at them, wondering what he did or say to act them that way. He understood when he finally remembered what he just said.

I have to go to the bathroomI'll come with you!

God, how stupid was that of him? He blushed so much, that it was really obvious. "I didn't mean that! What I meant was… I'm going to toilet as well," he explained, as he sweated a lot then left Shinichi and Ran.

The two just laughed on seeing Heiji act this way. Though, as soon as they noticed the other was laughing as well, they stopped such act and eyed the other person with a serious face.

Sooner or later, they ignored each other yet again.

_**By the Comfort Room Doors**_

Kazuha was about to open the door to the women's room, when a tight grip got a hold of her. He pulled her then as if pinned her to the wall.

She got scared and thought it even was a perverted guy. She took her aikido stance and was ready to turnover the guy. Imagine her surprise that it was only Heiji and that she just beaten him in front of a lot of people.

"Heiji!! Gomen!" she said and helped him up from the floor. She was really embarrassed. "I thought you were a…"

He rolled his eyes. "I am not a pervert, okay! Good thing Kudo and Ran didn't see that." He afterwards cleared off the dirt on his pants and stood up. "Anyway, as I was about to say, we have to do something! We have to get them forgive each other! Make them friends again!!!"

"But how!? I think this fight is the biggest fight they've had. And it's my entire fault!" she reasoned out.

He looked at her, all guilty. He knew it was time that someone knew what he tried to do, which succeeded, though gone too out of hand. "No, it was my fault. I pushed him _**intentionally." **_

"But I told Ran not to let Shinichi know her feelings! Not to see that she likes him! She might have thought that letting Shinichi know that she was okay with him kissing Minami was… okay! Hell it isn't for her! She actually left the room because she was jealous," his best friend explained to him, walking around and around him.

Heiji got annoyed in her panicking. She pinned her once more to the wall, not seeing that some people were staring at them already. "Hmm… tomorrow will be the last scenes of the film, right?"

Kazuha blushed so much for two apparent reasons. One, it was the position Heiji had put them. They were absolutely close to each other that a tiny insect could not go in between them. And two, since Heiji let her remember that tomorrow's the last scenes, she recalled that she still had to kiss Heiji. All she could do was nod, yet at the back of her mind she was ranting on what she would do tomorrow.

"Well, we have to bring them together. And since tomorrow's scenes are going to be…" Heiji paused in hesitation. At that moment, he was the one who recalled of the kissing scene. It became so awkward between Kazuha and him, that he blushed so much. He just tried to ignore it the best he can and continue on what he was about to say. "uh… intense, then it'll be pretty easy to do so. Their characters end up together anyway. So it'll be a piece of cake."

However, as soon as Kazuha was about to tell what an ingenious plan Heiji had laid upon, a guard of the restaurant they were in approached them.

He faked a cough to gain the two's attention. "Excuse me you two."

Which worked perfectly. They both looked at the guy.

"Uhmm… can we excuse you two to leave the place? Such obscene acts shouldn't be tolerated in this restaurant."

Kazuha just blushed even more and became speechless. She didn't expect _that _was what it looked like to the other people.

Although, Heiji felt differently. He took his hand away from Kazuha and looked straight at the guard. "What? We're just talking," he sounded in a semi-loud voice, though was heard by Shinichi and Ran who was by the other corner of the place.

"I'm sorry, but some customers requested this. Please leave the premises already, or I'll be forced to take you out with compulsion."

"What!?" Heiji furiously said.

This alarmed Kazuha. She pulled Heiji and tried to bring him outside. "Let's just listen to him and leave. We'll meet with Shinichi and Ran tomorrow. And I think it would be better to leave them together for a longer time. They need it," she explained, and tugged him all the way to the door.

Shinichi and Ran saw them leave, and couldn't comprehend why they would ditch them. And thinking that things wouldn't go any worse, the waiter had come and gave them their bill.

It was another expensive bill yet again. Shinichi eyed Ran, and Ran eyed Shinichi. Who was going to pay for Heiji and Kazuha's bill?

"You pay for them! I already paid for the three of you yesterday, when you guys ditched me!" he stated annoyingly.

Ran stood up. "You deserved to be left alone and pay for the entire bill, being a jerk to Heiji and all! And I think this time, you deserve it again! Goodbye!" she said and left him.

Shinichi had to pay for everything again. His allowance was surely going to the rocks. Lucky him. NOT!

_**The Next Day**_

The plan was set, and after Heiji and Kazuha left Shinichi and Ran. They had talked about the perfect plot of setting the two back again with the help of the last scenes from Hairspray.

The first of the last scenes to practice was wherein Tracy (Ran's role) was wanted by the police. Penny (Kazuha's role) had hidden her in her house's basement, yet her mom found her and trapped her inside. On the next scene, it will be when Penny looks for her boyfriend Seaweed and they do their best to let Tracy escape.

In this scene was also where Link (Shinichi's role) had to go to Tracy's house, realizing that he was in love with her. And they had to sing a duet.

Shinichi entered singing the duet carefully, still a lot angry with Ran from last night. He really didn't feel like singing a song of love to the girl that left him to pay for dinner last night. Though, he was still mixed emotions with it, since Ran was still the girl he loved for about 17 years.

Anyway, he started with his voice dragging, as if he wasn't really in the mood, which he actually was. Everyone noticed this, but they just let him be since it was still rehearsal.

Ran entered to sing her other parts, her voice dragging as well. She too wasn't in the mood after yesterday.

Next to enter was Kazuha and Heiji, singing their duet together. They did a bit of a good job, better than anyone would expect, since the scene was pretty awkward.

The whole song was about to finish, and before Heiji and Kazuha were about to do their plan, they had to _kiss. _

It took a few tries, since it would technically be both of their first kisses. But finally, they had done it when Shinichi made a rude remark about Heiji not being man enough to do such thing.

"Bah, Heiji's just a whiny little girl. He can't kiss a girl."

Heiji shot him a look and then looked at Kazuha immediately. His heart still was racing so much, and he felt so nervous. But he managed to take Kazuha by her waist and carefully kissed her on the lips.

He soon after broke the kiss and faced Shinichi. "Says you, Kudo! I proved you wrong! Let's see if you can do that in your kissing scene!"

Shinichi and Ran became totally shy and blushed so much, not being able to say anything. Kazuha in the other hand was still stuck in her own mind, loving how Heiji kissed her. It was exactly how she wished it would be.

Heiji turned away from them and then to Kazuha. "Oh, things are looking better already," he whispered to Kazuha, who finally snapped out, back to reality.

"…yeah."

Actually, Shinichi and Ran weren't supposed to kiss for that scene yet. They were actually supposed to do that at the final part, where it's the contest for Ms. Baltimore where Ran's part wins.

However, both of them just found the urge to do so. Their anger came out to their passion and affection for each other.

Shinichi pulled Ran to her as she willingly surrendered to his arms. He laid out a soft and delicate kiss and she returned it to him beautifully.

This wow-ed the audience. The tension was replaced with delight of the moment. Of course, except Minami felt this.

She sighed a bit yet accepted it anyway. That childish crush of Shinichi had to break sometime. It was obvious that from the moment she met him, Shinichi was all Ran's. Even before that. She only had met her when they entered high school anyway.

The two struggled to breathe for air, and as they did, Heiji just had to remark, "You do know your kissing scene is by the last scene, right?"

The two hesitated to continue the kiss and looked at Heiji weirdly then blushed in total crimson.

"…I knew that," Shinichi tried to cover up. "I just… wanted to prove to you… how better a kisser I am than you."

"Baka! That won't prove anything! You kissed a different girl! How are we to judge that?!"

The two eyed each other irritably. "Well… you're black!!!" Shinichi yelled out of anger and pure desperation. It was such a childish thing to say.

"Well… I'm a better detective than you!" he blurted out. 'twas another childish thing to say.

"Oh, you did not just go and say that!!!"

"Well I did!!"

Luckily, the director went in between them, as soon as something really bad was going to happen. "Uh… you all did great? Let's just continue with the next scene?"

Heiji crossed his arms. "Not until I get payback from him calling me… _black."_

Shinichi looked the other way. "Well… I'm not forgiving him in calling himself a better detective than me!"

Kazuha and Ran looked at each other. Something had to be done. They pulled Heiji and Shinichi and looked at them straight at the eye.

Then Kazuha kissed Heiji and Ran kissed Shinichi to shut them up.

The audience got more thrilled than ever.

And as soon as the kiss was broke. The two stubborn men finally forgot what they were fighting about. They were too happy of what just happened.

Ran and Kazuha in the other hand could just blush. They never imagined that they could do that. But they knew it had to be done.

The director butted in again. "I AM LOVING THIS!!! Just use this in the scenes and in the actual play and I'm sure it'll be a success!!!"

Everybody could just either sigh, break a sweat, of fall down anime style.

---

In the end, the play was success. Shinichi and Ran even gave an encore kiss. Of course, Heiji wouldn't take that. He kissed Kazuha as well.

And 'twas the end of a very great play.

After that was another great dinner, which the four of them finally paid for it.

_**A/N: Hope you all enjoyed, my friends!!! :D I know the ending was sudden… but I couldn't add anything more that would make it better :P Anyway, hope you all read and review even though I updated only now. :D Well, ciao for now! **_


	7. What A Cowboy's Gotta Do

_**Hello Dear Readers! Super-mega-ultra sorry for not updating as soon as I can. Had a mixture of writer's block and a busy schedule that I couldn't continue it. Luckily, here I am now with the next chapter! :D As expected, this is a HeijiXKazuha chapter set in the Wild West. Who else is better to be a cowboy than Heiji? Now... without further ado... A Cowboy's Gotta Do, What A Cowboy's Gotta Do!**_

Not so long ago, there lived a man named Toyama and his daughter Kazuha. They lived in a small house by the fields near the not-so-known town of Old Valley. They raised farm animals for their living and lived a simple life. Kazuha would sell eggs and milk at the town every Sunday morning as Toyama tended to their animals.

One not so very ordinary day, a group of outsiders came to Old Valley. It was a gang of whites who obviously were looking for trouble. As they entered the town, they ruined all the stores and threatened everyone that came their way.

Since it was a Sunday, Kazuha was at town and selling like she usually did. However, even though she saw the chaos the gang were making, she knew she couldn't just leave her goods behind. Her father worked hard to get those milk and eggs. And if she didn't get to sell them, their weekly income would be affected.

She collected her goods quickly, having the courage to risk herself be beaten than to just runaway.

As a gang member was about to thrust his whip to her, someone got in the way and caught the merciless strike.

With a dark complexion, a height of 6 feet, an arrogant smirk, and the courage to face such strong opponents, it could only be one person.

"Heiji!" Kazuha, with eyes open wide, said in surprise, seeing that her chilhood bestfriend just protected her.

"You really should be careful, Kazuha. Life doesn't depend on eggs and milk, you know," he said, then threw the guy off his horse.

He suffered a nasty fall and couldn't move anymore.

Kazuha could just smile, and be teary-eyed from the relief that her bestfriend had just saved her. "Arigato, Heiji."

Upon seeing the ruckus, the gang's two main leaders, whose faces were covered with bandanas on their mouth and their hat, leaving only their eyes seen, came in front of the herd of horses. They went down on their own horses and approached Heiji.

"You're a strong one," the one with the red bandana said.

"Yet he is, Akai. No ordinary person could hurt any of our gang members; but you took Yamabuki there with ease," the other one with the white bandana said.

Heiji eyed them seriously, and observed the member he just beaten. Then he made a taunting face. "Ah! I see, you call each other by the color of your bandanas. Such girls!"

Akai pulled out his gun and pointed it directly on Heiji's head. "You're testing our patience. We merely just want a face-off with you. It's been quite a long time since we had a nice battle with someone who's strong and arrogant like you."

"Are you sure he's worth fighting? He may be all air but no skill, compared to us two," Shiroki, the white bandana-ed man asked.

Heiji got annoyed. He kicked his right leg up high. Akai and Shiroki just dodged it easily.

Akai smirked. "He's got spunk, I give you that."

Kazuha pulled Heiji's sleeve. "Heiji, stop taunting them! They're too much for you to handle. You're outnumbered! Just let them be."

"Aho! Not after what they did to our town! We'll be needing a lot of repairs because of what they've done!"

"Tell you what, if you promise to fight us and you win, we will pay for all the damages we have caused in your little town," Akai bargained.

"What happens if you win?" Heiji asked nervously, a bit scared to know what they would want.

Shiroki swiftly then appeared behind him. Heiji instinctively tried to kick him, but he was too fast that he even captured Kazuha.

After that, he then went back beside his co-captain with Kazuha who had her hands and feet all tied up. "We keep your girlfriend."

Heiji looked angry now. That was the last straw. He wasn't going to let them have Kazuha. Who knows what they would do with her!

"To show that we have mercy, we will give you a day to train. Meet us tomorrow here and we will settle our fight then."

"Okay! I accept! But only if I fight one of you so it will be fair!"

"But of course."

And with that, Akai and Shiroki got on their own horses, and the gang disappeared in the western wind.

Heiji could just fall on his knees from dissapointment in himself. He clutched the ground's sand and looked really mad. _"Kazuha... I'll get you back."_

Heiji trained hard for the rest of the day. He practiced with his horse, his strength and speed and even his shooting skills. No matter what happened, he was going to get Kazuha back.

The gang finally reached their headquarters and brought Kazuha to the middle of the room, centered with light, as a usual hostage was treated. It seems that even in the olden times this scene has happened.

Shiroki removed the two cloths wrapped on Kazuha's face, so that she would be able to see, and be able to speak. "So m'lady, start talking now. What are your boyfriend's weaknesses?"

Kazuha, a bit teary eyed of the circumstance, tried her best to look courageous. She raised her head up high. "I'm not telling. Why should I tell you guys anything, anyway? Besides, Heiji isn't weak! I don't actually know if he has any weaknesses."

"It's not that we need it, anyway, Shiroki. That guy will be dead tomorrow," Akai said confidently.

Kazuha's tears started to flow down. "You can't kill him! You won't be able to! He's the best cowboy in our town. You guys are going down!" she exclaimed, yet still crying out of worry for her beloved Heiji.

Akai went near to her and smelled her hair. "You know, I like girls with attitude. When we're done with him, I'll make you my second girlfriend."

"Second?"

"His real girlfriend will kill him if she finds out he's cheating," Shiroki explain.

Akai nudged his friend right at the stomach. "Enough! Come, let us go and count the money we've stolen for today."

They all left Kazuha alone in the room to do as Akai said.

As they were gone, Kazuha did her best to struggle and get the ropes off her, even to the extent that the chair she was tied to fell down with her. However, the ropes that were put on her were really tight. She couldn't do anything about it, and remained tied to the chair, now lying on the floor.

Suddenly, the door to the room opened and she heard some voices.

"Fine, you two can enter that room. But make sure not to release our hostage or let her get away!" It was Akai, he was instructing someone.

"I won't, Akai. Jeesh, you talk to me as if I wasn't your girlfriend!" a girl said.

Two brunette girls who looked a lot like each other entered the room. They closed the door and went to the struggling Kazuha.

"Oh, you poor thing," the one with the pointy hair said and put the chair back on its legs. "Daijoubu?"

Kazuha made a frown. "Quit the act, I'm sure your boyfriend made you come in here to get some information about Heiji. He figured a woman's touch would make me talk."

"Look, he may be my boyfriend, but he's not that evil. I know he may steal money, but he usually uses it for the repair of our town. His means might be bad, but his intention is good. Plus, we went in here feeling sorry for you. It has nothing to do about his plan on letting you spill your boyfriend's secrets"

Kazuha blushed from the "boyfriend" comment. She managed to ignore it after a while then just looked at the girl straight at the eye. It seemed that she was telling the truth. She eyed the other girl, and she seemed sincere as well.

She even made a smile. "I'm Shiroki's girlfriend, call me Daisy. And she's Akai's girlfriend, Rose."

The hostage smiled a bit. "I'm Kazuha. You two seem very friendly. But i assume the names you told us are just codenames as well. They're kinds of flowers associated with the codenames of your boyfriends."

"Eh? You're one smart girl! Why did you get kidnapped anyway?" Rose asked.

Kazuha's spirits went down again. "That gang ambushed our town. My bestfriend just saved me and got on their nerves so they kidnapped me and challenged him."

"Your bestfriend must be something! The gang usually doesn't care much of other people. They just want to get the money," Daisy explained.

"But do they really have to kidnap me! Look, I know you two aren't bad people, but can you help me out? Get me out of here. I'm scared if something bad happens to Heiji, wouldn't you be if you..." she stopped talking and got surprised of what she just realized.

"If you what?" Daisy asked.

Rose smiled and understood what she meant. "If you lost a loved one. I know I wouldn't bear losing Akai. I love him too much."

Daisy smiled as well. "The sames goes for me for Shiroki. I know he has flaws, but I still love him despite all that."

Kazuha made a small smile. "Heiji has a lot of flaws too."

The three of them laughed of the thought of loving such guys.

It was clear that they all got along pretty well. And because Rose and Daisy were such good people, they couldn't let Kazuha be tied up into such a mess.

Rose removed the ropes around Kazuha. "You must miss him. Quick, leave through the back door and runaway from here with Heiji. That way, the gang won't catch you."

Kazuha was surprised of what she had done. Her boyfriend was head of the gang, but she was merely letting her go. "But what about you two? Won't you two get hurt?"

"You underestimate us, Kazuha-chan! We didn't become the gang leaders' girlfriends for nothing!" Daisy said braggingly.

"Anyway, you must go. Quick!" Rose then pushed Kazuha outside the door. She had no choice but to be lead outside.

"Don't worry about us! We'll be okay! Just don't look back."

Kazuha nodded, tears slipping down her cheek a bit. She was awarded such kindness to people she didn't know. And she was scared of what might happen to them.

However, she took their advice and ran away back to Old Valley, not looking back, just thinking that she must save Heiji at whatever cost.

It was a full moon that night and Heiji was still training. He was at the field, just out of the city, in front of the house Kazuha lived in. He had told Toyama already of what had happened, and of course he didn't like it. He received a punch on the face for not saving his daughter, but he knew there wasn't anything he could do anymore.

Heiji was saddened of seeing Toyama cry. He was a strong man, you never thought you would see such a sight from him.

As the night grew and everyone was asleep. Heiji heard the voice he had been waiting for in the silent night where he felt all alone.

"Heiji!" he heard then then looked back. He saw the lovely Kazuha. His lovely Kazuha, was safe and back at last.

She ran to him and hugged him tight and he of course accepted her hug. "Kazuha... you're back!" he said, with tears running down on his cheeks.

"I'm back Heiji. And it's all thanks to Daisy and Rose, the girlfriends of those gang leaders."

"They let you go?"

"Yes. But we must hurry and runaway. Those cowboys are strong people, and I don't you want to get hurt. Come on!" Kazuha said and pulled Heiji.

Heiji let go of her grip. "No."

"Heiji, you can be killed!"

"I said no!"

"Heiji!"

"Aho!" he yelled at her. "I won't allow them to beat me."

"Aho! Forget your pride! I'm sure if you beat one of them, they'll all attack you! You won't be able to handle them all!" she yelled back.

"Aho! This isn't about you. Even if you weren't kidnapped, I would beat those guys whatever it takes."

Kazuha looked down. "So... you really didn't care that I was kidnapped?"

He was startled. Why was she getting all dramatic all of a sudden? "No! Of course I cared. You're my bestfriend. And your father has been worried sick of you."

She turned away from him. "That's all I'll ever be, right? A bestfriend?"

Heiji frowned. "You should go inside now. Your father is really worried."

Kazuha faced him straight at the eye. "Answer me, Heiji... is that all I'll ever be! A bestfriend?"

Heiji approached her and hugged her tight. "Aho. I've wanted to be more than bestfriends with you for a long time. I just didn't know how to say it."

She looked at him passionately, as his hands encircled her waist. "Heiji...do you love me?"

He looked away, blushing madly. "...Yes... I do." He then looked at her seriously and saw that her eyes were closed and was expecting him to kiss her. He of course did as expected.

Toyama, who couldn't fall asleep at all, saw this. He knew the two were bound to end up together someday. It thrilled him that today was that day, that and that her daughter was back safe and sound. With this sight, he finally knew everything would be all right. He went to sleep afterwards, with a big grin on his face.

After kissing, Kazuha held both of Heiji's hands. "Heiji... if you love me... would you runaway with me? Let's leave this place! We don't need any more danger in our life."

Heiji let go of her. "I'm sorry, Kazuha. I can't agree to that. Ask me anything, except that. I know this isn't what you want as well. You want justice to be served and you just won't abandon your father like that."

She clutched her fists. "Demo, Heiji... I don't want you to get hurt."

Heiji held her face and gave her a passionate kiss on the lips. "I won't. I promise." He then started walking away from her, waving goodbye as his worried face wasn't seen by Kazuha. He may not admit it, but somehow, he had a bad feeling of what was to happen.

_**Back at the Headquarters**_

The others eventually found out what Daisy and Rose had done. This angered Akai. "Why did you let them get away!" he asked the two girls.

Rose wasn't scared of him at all. "I knew you liked the girl, Akai! And I wouldn't let you flirt with some.. bimbo!" she covered up and yelled at him.

Akai got a bit scared of his girlfriend, and the whole gang did too. Who exactly was the leader?

"I didn't like her! I was just taunting her! Scaring her that I would actually do something bad to her!" he defended.

Rose looked at him with a raised bow, as if taunting him. She actually believed him, however, she had fun mentally torturing him at times.

Daisy could just giggle as she knew what Rose was thinking about.

Then, Shiroki went forward. "Anyway, we don't really need her. I'm sure that guy is as hard-headed as can be. We'll definitely meet him tomorrow."

Akai smirked. "You're right. I guess there's nothing to worry about. Plus, I will win even without the girl."

The girls got alarmed. Kazuha had become their friend already, yet they were the leaders' girlfriends. They didn't know what to feel and who's side to take.

_**The Next Day**_

Heiji was all ready. He wore his hat, boots, had his horse and even had an emergency gun in case of any rough business.

The entire gang appeared as the time was right. Aside from Toyama and Kazuha who were spectators, the gang and Heiji were the only ones at the outskirts of town.

Akai went to the front of the gang and extended a hand to Heiji. "May the best man win, **partner**," he said, distinctively emphasizing the last word to scare off Heiji.

Heiji arrogantly smirked. "That would be me, **partner**," he said then shook Akai's hand, and just decided to show him that he wasn't afraid at all.

The two positioned themselves far from each other and rode their horses. The winner was going to be the one who remained on the horse the longest, after being continuously attacked.

The two eyed each other for a while and then began to charge each other with their horse. After a few seconds, they both got their guns and started to fire.

Everyone else took cover. The two kept on firing their guns until they surprisingly both fell off their horses at the exact same time. However, this didn't let them finish the duel and they went on with the fight. They kept firing and dodging, firing and dodging. It was mutually understood among everyone there that the winner would be determined as the person who first shoots the other.

The fight went on for hours. Kazuha kept supplying Heiji with additional ammo, whereas Rose was helping Shiroki with his ammo.

However, it came to the point that they both had no ammo left for their guns. They had no choice. They had to settle this in a physical fight.

Akai and Heiji charged each other and began punching and kicking. This time, the person who isn't able to stand up anymore loses.

However, even in a fist fight, the two seemed to be in a draw.

Akai gave a final punch, but Heiji kicked him at the same time as well. The blows were pretty hard and they both fell on the ground, unable to move anymore.

Each of their girlfriends came to heal them. "Heiji!" "Akai!"

The other spectators were bewildered. Heiji and Akai were trully amazing to have fought for so long and still managed a draw. Because of this, Shiroki decided to say something. "Great fight you did there, cowboy. I can't believe you managed a draw against Akai."

Heiji was still catching his breath, but he managed to reply a bit. "You mess with my girl, you mess with me."

"Don't worry, as she may have already told you, we haven't done anything to her. And don't worry, we're noble cowboys. We will keep our word and pay for all the mess we've caused."

"Good," Heiji said as he smirked.

"Although, if you're so willing to do so, why raid villages in the first place? What does your gang need anyway?" Kazuha asked in curiosity.

Daisy stepped in to the conversation. "Our village was raided as well. It was a gang of bandits. Now, we don't have anything left. Akai and Shiroki trained so hard for revenge, however we never found the bandits. So we never got back what was rightfully ours."

"So you thought it would be better to get from another innocent village? Pathetic!" Heiji commented.

"I know it is. But we had no choice! We live in a world where it's hard to live in. We have to learn to survive whatever happens! That's what those bandits taught us, so we might as well put that learning to use!" Akai furiously said.

"And then what? Say you beat me? You get our resources and rebuild your village. Our village would just feel the same way you did and go to the extent of bullying the next village! It'll be a cycle and it'll never end!" Heiji explained.

It became really silent. All you could hear is the breeze of the wind.

Akai bowed down and began to cry. "We're sorry. We're so sorry... We didn't mean to. I guess what happened to our village kinda gave us poor judgement. Oh wait... that's no excuse. We're just really sorry."

Heiji stood up and offered a hand to Akai. "It's okay. Stop crying, okay? I wouldn't want to see the cowboy who's as good as me to be crying."

Akai stopped as told and took Heiji's hand. "We're sorry, though. I'm really sorry for all the fuss."

"It's okay. It was a great fight, nothing to be ashamed. At least you've learned your lesson now. And besides, don't worry, our village will help rebuild your village as well. I promise to give a good word to the Sheriff. Besides, what's the use of fighting with others when we can fix everything on our own?"

Akai smiled. Everyone in the gang smiled. Heiji may have been faced with a difficult duel, letting him receive several bruises, but in the end of the day, he became the better man and made everything better.

_**The End**_

"AND CUUUT! Perfect! After that, we just show a picture of the horizon and the movie's done!" Sonoko instructed from the megaphone.

"Finally, we're done with filming! I can finally remove this hot attire!" Heiji said as he lied on the sand and removed his leather jacket.

"You tell me, Heiji, I can't believe people in the West had to wear such stuff," Shinichi said and copied what he did.

"Don't forget about me! Since we three are the main lead, we had to wear the most clothes. And it includes this leather jacket! Seriously, how could have they lived with this!" Kaito said and did the same as the other two.

Ran, Kazuha and Aoko went near the three boys and looked at them and sighed with heads shaking. "Such babies."

_**The Real End**_

* * *

_**A/N: See what I did there? :P So could you readers identify who exactly Shinichi, Kaito, Ran and Aoko were in the film? I'd give you guys a hint... the colors and flowers would really help. ;) Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Please review, okay? Thanks for reading!**_


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